enHealth Council

Session Reports

Report of 4th Session of the enHealth Council
25 July, Darwin

Opening of Fourth Session of enHealth Council

Administrative Matters

Policy Issues

Guidelines and publications development

Environmental health issues

Other Business

Next meeting

Opening of Fourth Session of enHealth Council

The fourth session of the enHealth Council was held in Darwin on 25 July 2000. The following Members were in attendance:

Professor C. Ewan	Chair
Mr O. Ashby	National President, Australian Institute of Environmental Health
Ms J. Bowman	Department of Human Services, Victoria
Dr K. Buckett	Commonwealth Department of Health & Aged Care
Mr P. Burnett	Environment Australia
Mr M. Jackson	Health Department of WA
Dr M. Jacobs	Department of Health & Human Services, Tasmania
Professor I. Lowe	Australian Consumers’ Association
Mr C. McCarthy	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Commission
Mr B. Moreton	Queensland Health (for Mr J. Dodds)
Dr A. Neller	Public Health Association of Australia
Mr P. Prendergast	Public Health Policy & Regulatory, Ministry of Health, NZ
Mr G. Richards	NSW Health Department (for Dr S. Corbett)
Ms T. Ward	Territory Health Services, Northern Territory (for Mr X. Schobben)
Mr J. Woollard	Department of Health and Community Care, ACT
Ms S. Tuffin	Secretary to Council (Commonwealth Department of Health & Aged Care)
Ms H. Heaney	Secretary, National Indigenous Environmental Health Forum (Commonwealth Australian Department of Health and Ageing)

Apologies
Dr S. Corbett	NSW Health Department
Mr J. Dodds	Queensland Health
Dr T. Maynard	Department of Human Services, South Australia
Mr X. Schobben	Territory Health Services, Northern Territory

Administrative Matters

Action arising

The status of action arising from the third session of Council was noted. Additional information from the Ecosystem Health Conference in July would be provided to New South Wales to support preparation of an introductory section to their document on salinity and human health.

Minutes of Executive Committee meeting – May 2000

Council noted the record of decisions of the Executive Committee.

Out of session items and decisions (April–June 2000)

Council noted the three out of session decisions made between April and June:

To sponsor the Mutagenesis and Experimental Pathology Society of Australasia International Summer Conference ‘Is Cancer a Preventable Environmental Disease?’
To publish the ‘Environmental Health Risk Perception in Australia’ as an enHealth Council document; and
To release the draft "Emergency Management: Environmental Health Guidelines" for targeted consultation for a one-month period.

Managing and progressing national priorities

Members acknowledged the significant achievement of the Council in the first 8 months since its establishment. However they recognised that the current workload was heavy and put pressure on individual Members. The Secretariat sought advice on ways to improve the operation of Council and identify more efficient and effective processes and a more equitable distribution of workload.

The Secretariat was commended for the operations already put in place and the excellent communication flow between itself and the Members. It was agreed that these processes should continue. In order to address the workload of the Council, Members agreed that issues presented to the Council must be closely examined and put in the context of existing priority areas, before agreeing to take on new work. A triage framework had previously been used to determine the status of new issues in relation to priorities set out in the National Environmental Health Strategy Implementation Plan.

Policy Issues

National Environmental Health Strategy Implementation Plan

a) Implementation Plan

The release of the Strategy Implementation Plan was considered a major achievement of the Council. It documents the priority issues that the enHealth Council will take a lead role in as part of the implementing the Strategy and its Terms of Reference.

b) Sustainable Development

Members confirmed that sustainable development was a priority issue where enHealth Council could be a leader in integrating sustainable development and environmental health.

Council agreed to develop a policy demonstrating sustainability principles in its operations and an information kit that would provide practical examples of how sustainable development and environmental health can be integrated for better decision-making and longevity of policies and programs.

c) Economic evaluation

Council reaffirmed the priority afforded to this issue and recommended that the task of developing an economic evaluation methodology for environmental health be given to a jurisdiction to lead. The methodology was considered a necessary tool for decision-making for Council, governments and policy makers.

d) Web page development

The Secretariat foreshadowed the launch of the enHealth Council web page. Members agreed that this will assist in promoting the enHealth Council and its activities and will raise awareness more broadly of environmental health issues and programs.

e) Standards and Guidelines

Council noted the completion of an audit of Australian environmental health information, standards and guidelines, which was an activity identified in the Implementation Plan and commissioned by the Commonwealth Australian Department of Health and Ageing. The results of the audit will be presented to the Research Task Group as part of a priority setting process for research and advice development.

Members agreed that this audit provides a snapshot of information, standards and guidelines on environmental health in Australia at a specific period of time. Council recommended that the database not be continuously updated, due to limited Secretariat resources. However, a similar audit is recommended every 3 years. Members noted that the database is expected to be web-enabled for use by environmental health practitioners through the enHealth Council website and will be an excellent reference tool.

f) Non-auditory health effects of noise

Members noted the update provided by New South Wales on the project looking at the non-auditory health effects of noise, commissioned by the Commonwealth Australian Department of Health and Ageing.

Indigenous Environmental Health

a) National Indigenous Environmental Health Forum

The Chair of the National Indigenous Environmental Health Forum, Mr Charlie Jackson, was welcomed as an official member of the enHealth Council and gave a brief overview of the Forum. The Forum has representation from around Australia and will be extended to include representatives from the Torres Strait Islands and the Anangu Pitjantjatjara lands.

Council formally endorsed the Terms of Reference and are as follows:

To identify and provide policy advice to the enHealth Council on Indigenous and environmental health issues;
To provide comment to the enHealth Council on national strategies/activities that impact on environmental and public health issues; and
To provide input and direction into the Indigenous Environmental Health Conference/Workshops and other mainstream conferences relating to environmental health.

Council briefly discussed recommendations from the first two national workshops on Indigenous environmental health, held in Cairns and Broome respectively, and asked the Forum to review the recommendations and the action completed or underway in addressing them. The Forum will present a report on these recommendations and priorities for the next Council meeting in October.

b) National Indigenous Environmental Health Workshop

Council noted that planning was underway for the Third National Indigenous Environmental Health Workshop, to be held in Alice Springs in November 2000, with the Forum taking a lead role in refining the program. The second meeting of the Forum, being held on 27 July, is primarily focussed on finalising the program and speakers.

c) Indigenous Environmental Health – new project

A new project to progress actions identified in the National Environmental Health Strategy Implementation Plan was supported. The project will map the key agencies and organisations that manage, have an active role or fund Indigenous environmental health around Australia. Council was advised that two projects being progressed under the National Public Health Partnership were related but did not overlap with the project proposed for the enHealth Council. In fact, the projects are complementary and will provide an overall picture of legislation and action in Indigenous environmental health around Australia.

The proposed mapping exercise will be undertaken in two stages, the first being the identification of agencies and organisations. Before proceeding to the next stage of the project, which looks into the legislative remits, the Commonwealth will consider the outcomes of the two National Public Health Partnership projects looking at legislation specifically.

d) Update on OATSIH Review

Background information was provided on the National Review of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Worker Training, being managed by the Office of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health in the Commonwealth Australian Department of Health and Ageing. Council had previously discussed the inclusion of Environmental Health Workers as part of the Review and is an item on the agenda for the second meeting of the Forum.

e) Update on Public Health Law Reference Group

Council was advised that the National Public Health Partnership Public Health Law and Indigenous Health project focus had narrowed focussing on Queensland specifically in the first instance. Members agreed that the enHealth Council should continue to be represented on the project Reference Group, as environmental health was a key component of the project.

enHealth Council Task Groups

a) Research Task Group

Council endorsed the Terms of Reference of the Task Group. Its role will be to:

advise the enHealth Council on environmental health research priorities and inform policy decision-making;
develop a priority setting framework, that sets out criteria to identify priorities for research in environmental health; and
identify appropriate mechanisms to progress environmental health research.

Members noted that the Task Group was developing a priority framework that provides a methodical way of identifying and strengthening the arguments for environmental health projects to be progressed via appropriate funding bodies.

b) Information Task Group

Council endorsed the Terms of Reference of the Task Group. Its role will be to:

advise the enHealth Council on environmental health information priorities which will inform policy decision-making;
identify appropriate mechanisms to progress the development of an environmental health information system; and
the systematic development of environmental health information including:
identifying gaps and deficiencies of data;
links between environment and health data;
links between environment and health information; and
the development of environmental health indicators.

Members supported the proposal to invite representation from the Australian Local Government Association and the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health to joint the Information Task Group.

c) Workforce Task Group

Outcomes of the PHERP Environmental Health Symposium, held in July, were noted. In particular, Council agreed that as a first step in reviewing environmental health degrees, graduate and post graduate entry and environmental health units in related tertiary level education, it would be appropriate that attention be paid to training and education given to Environmental Health Officers in the first instance. As a result, in principle agreement was given to dissolve the enHealth Council Workforce Task Group in favour of a reconvened group, under the auspices of the Australian Institute of Environmental Health, as the first stage in addressing workforce issues under the National Environmental Health Strategy Implementation Plan.

The Task Group was asked to review the recommendations from the Symposium and prepare a report for the enHealth Council regarding the management of environmental health workforce issues.

Environmental health and children

A series of policy options around environmental health and children were considered. Resolutions from a conference on ‘Environmental Threats to the Health of Children’ in Manila recommended that an Office of Children’s Environmental Health be established in each country in the Region. While Council agreed that it will seek to fulfil a leadership role in environmental health nationally and in the region, it would not focus specifically on children, other groups or settings per se. Advice developed by the enHealth Council on issues such as waster, water and air would ensure considerations of children’s health were woven into the discussion.

Research issues around environmental health and children were referred to the Research Task Group for consideration as part of the broader priority setting process.

Guidelines and Publications Development

The Council endorsed a media protocol and a protocol on the use of the enHealth logo, which will be available on the website for reference.

Environmental Health Risk Assessment

Members noted that the public consultation process on the draft Environmental Health Risk Assessment framework had closed and agreed that an editorial panel be established to review the comments received and modify the document as appropriate.

Health Impact Assessment

a) Implementation Guidelines

Members noted the conduct of workshops around Australia on the draft Health Impact Assessment Implementation Guidelines. At the close of the 3-month consultation period, an editorial group will be convened to work through the submissions and recommend appropriate changes to the document.

b) Health Impact Assessment Series

A series on the health impacts of a range of issues was discussed. Members agreed that the series focus on the health impacts of particular issues identified as a priority by the Task Group and would include checklists or case studies where appropriate. Council noted that the Research Task Group was preparing a template for the series and that a scoping process of existing documents in jurisdictions would be required.

Environmental Health: Emergency Management Guidelines

Completion of the consultation process for the draft Emergency Management Guidelines was noted. An editorial group was nominated to work through submissions and revise the document in light of comments received.

Asbestos in Soil

Council gave in principle support to the proposal to develop guidelines for health investigation level of acceptable levels of asbestos fibres in soil. As a first step, however, a feasibility study will be undertaken, with Western Australia taking the lead on this issue.

Legionnaires Disease/Legionella

Council agreed that the National Environmental Health Forum monograph titled ‘Guidance on Legionella’ remained current with the exception of an appendix documenting jurisdictional requirements and regulatory approaches. Victoria agreed to take the lead and would convene a group to review the relevant appendices. Members also discussed the development of a consensus statement on Legionella and would consider this further at the October meeting of Council.

Involvement of key groups such as the Communicable Diseases Network of Australia and New Zealand (CDNANZ) would be consulted during the course of the work.

Environmental Health in the Home

Council considered the need to update the "Environmental health in the Home" publication given the release of data from the 1997 Time Use Survey. Members agreed that this be referred to the National Health and Medical Research Council as the original author for consideration.

Survey on Environmental Health Risk Perception in Australia

The results of the Survey were confirmed as important for the enHealth Council, National Public Health Partnership and other key agencies in comparing real risk with perceived risk and in targeting messages and projects.

The Research Task Group was asked to consider the Survey results and recommend priority areas for activities, communiques or other environmental health messages to the enHealth Council.

Environmental Health Issues

Potable Water

Council noted the current overlap in responsibility for water quality between the enHealth Council and the National Health and Medical Research Council. It was considered particularly important that national water quality issues were managed collaboratively between the relevant players.

enHealth Council and National Environment Protection Council

A formal agreement between the enHealth Council and the National Environment Protection Council is under negotiation. Again, Council noted the importance of fostering partnerships to work collaboratively on national environment and health issues.

National audit of rural and remote potable water

The Commonwealth commissioned project to measure the quality, availability and access to water around Australia and the development of a map of water supplies against populations, was reported. A Steering Committee was nominated to oversee the project.

A workshop will be held as part of the project to obtain further information and participation from relevant sectors and key stakeholders.

CSIRO SEERAM Network Workshop

A network of groups interested in Spatial Environmental Epidemiology Risk Assessment and Management (SEERAM) sought recognition from the enHealth Council as an expert reference group. While not being formally included in the structure of the Council, Members agreed that the Network had appropriate expertise and could assist in areas of environmental health information, data and modelling.

Air Ventilation Standard (AS1668.2)

Council noted that negotiations on the Standards Australia Air Ventilation Standard are continuing, as is the limited consideration of health issues. Members agreed that the Council views should be channelled through the Building Code Board in each jurisdiction.

Mosquito-borne diseases

Council was reminded that Western Australia had previously taken on a leadership and coordination of mosquito-borne diseases role nationally. Rather than placing this responsibility with one jurisdiction, it was agreed that the existing informal network around Australia provided the mechanism to share information between jurisdictions. The establishment of an e-mail newsgroup where information could be shared and where issues of national import could be raised would support this network and will be investigated.

The completion of Phase 1 of an economic evaluation of mosquito-borne diseases was reported. Council agreed that this study could be used as a case study for the development of an economic evaluation methodology for environmental health.

Other Business

Council congratulated Professor Christine Ewan on her appointment to the National Health and Medical Research Council and Professor Ian Lowe on being awarded the Environment Australia 2000 Award for individual achievement.

Cooperative Research Centre for Contamination, Assessment and Remediation

Council confirmed that a CRC would provide easy access to research in these areas but that neither the Council nor Commonwealth Australian Department of Health and Ageing, through the Environmental Health Section, would fund its establishment.

Code of Practice for Pest Management Technicians

Council was informed of the Pest Industry Advisory Group intention to develop a national code of practice for pest management technicians.

China UNDP Proposal on environmental health assessment

Members noted the proposed project being developed, under the auspices of the UNDP and the World Health Organization on the long-term development of environmental health capacity in China.

Review of National Standard for Licensing Pest Management Technicians

Council were advised that the National Environmental Health Forum Monograph titled ‘National Standard for Licensing Pest Management Technicians’ remained current and did not require review at this time.

Legionella longbeachae warning

Council supported the health warning label and symbols for potting mix and would consider avenues for promoting their use.

Benzene

The recent amendments to the fuel standards, proposed by the Commonwealth in relation to benzene, were discussed. Individual jurisdictions agreed to consider their position and share information with other jurisdictions.

Next Meeting

The next meeting of the enHealth Council will be held on 12–13 October in Cairns, immediately preceding the National Conference of the Australian Institute of Environmental Health.