Beyond
Pesticides Asks the Department of Justice to Recognize Accessibility Issues
for those with Chemical Sensitivity/Environmental Illness
(8/18/08)
- Read the full text of Beyond Pesticides' comment.
With a tremendous showing of support from organizations and individuals, Beyond Pesticides submitted a comment to the Department of Justice to request stronger protections under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) for those with chemical sensitivity(CS) or environmental illness. Currently, CS is recognized as a disability on a case by case basis, but no provisions have been made in the accessibility standards for those with CS. Without the recognition of accessibility requirements for those with CS and the adoption of accessibility standards, accomodation at work, school, housing, and recreation areas is extremely difficult for many who suffer from CS with debilitating effects.
Of the individuals and organizations who signed on to the comment, many had personal stories of chemical poisonings, often pesticides, that resulted in a life-long chemical sensitivity that "substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of such individual" (the definition of a disability under the ADA).
Beyond Pesticides proposed the adoption of language for accessibility standards pertaining to pesticide practices in public places. This language includes the enforced adoption of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices, which would considerably lower the chemical contamination of public spaces making them more accessible to those with CS. The adoption of such practices also significantly reduces the risk of chemical poisonings that can result in CS, thereby preventing disabilities before they occur.
Thank you to those who signed on to our comment and to those who provided valuable feedback on such an important issue.
- Read Beyond Pesticides’ Daily News Blog on the subject (8/14/08).
Thanks to Mary Lamielle of the National Center for Environmental Health Strategies (NCEHS) for alerting us to the comment period. Read NCEHS's comment.