ATSDR MEDIA ANNOUNCEMENT

Federal and State Health Agencies to Discuss
Health Findings with Community November 28 and 29

 

For Immediate Release: November 15, 2006

ATLANTA –The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) and the Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH) will host public availability sessions November 28 and 29 to discuss findings of the Public Health Assessment, Occurrence of Selected Health Conditions in Ottawa County, Oklahoma.

The public availability sessions will be held at the Miami Civic Center Tuesday November 28, 2006 from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm, and repeated Wednesday November 29, 2006 from 10:00 am to noon. The Civic Center is located at 129 5th Street NW in Miami Okla.

Each public availability session will begin with the presentation of the findings from the public health assessment and ATSDR’s plan for the Tar Creek Superfund Site. The plan covers nine community health concerns, such as, consumption of fish and native foods, child health and air quality issues, and contact with sediment at Riverview Park in Miami.

For the public health assessment, ATSDR and OSDH reviewed information from Oklahoma's cancer and birth defects registry, special education and newborn screening programs, death certificates, and a survey of health conditions in adults. 

After the presentation, representatives from ATSDR, OSDH and other groups will be available to meet one-on-one with community members to provide information and to hear their comments and health concerns regarding health activities at the Tar Creek Superfund site. Representatives include Ottawa County Health Department, Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality and fish studies, Local Environmental Action Demanded (LEAD) Agency, and Wyandotte Nation.

For more information about ATSDR’s involvement at the Tar Creek Superfund site, please visit www.atsdr.cdc.gov/sites/tarcreek; for additional information on the November 28 and 29 public availability sessions, community members can contact Health Communication Specialist La Freta Dalton at 404-498-1743 or LDalton@cdc.gov, or ATSDR Regional Representative Jennifer Lyke at 214-665-8362 or JLyke@cdc.gov. 

ATSDR, a federal public health agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, evaluates the human health effects of exposure to hazardous substances. 

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Members of the news media can request an interview by calling the NCEH/ATSDR Office of Communication at 770-488-0700.