Students and parents don’t have the right-to-know, right-to-participate, and right-to-refuse exposure to harmful substances, so the Labour Environmental Alliance (LEAS) is promoting a Students’ Environmental Bill of Rights which will allow them to do so.
by Mae Burrows,Executive Director, Labour Environmental Alliance Society
What’s a parent to do when her teenager comes home complaining about a burning throat and eyes from the powder cleaner used in his art class? Or the parent who thinks that the paint solvent used to paint the halls and classrooms might contain a reproductive toxin, or the rug cleaner — a carcinogen? Or the child who thinks her asthma is worse at school than anywhere else?
Employees in schools — custodians, secretaries, principals and teachers — have the right-to-know about and the right to deal with, any toxin in their work environment. And many custodians in the BC school system have done a great job through their union’s health and safety committee (CUPE) in identifying toxins in cleaning products and finding good substitutes. The right-to-know, right-to-participate, right-to-refuse exposure to harmful substances, as well as the right to not be discriminated against for asserting these rights, are in the Workers Compensation Board regulations. Workers are increasingly asserting their rights about exposure to toxins.
But students (and parents) don’t have these same rights, so the Labour Environmental Alliance (LEAS) is promoting a Students’ Environmental Bill of Rights. The aim is to get commitments from school trustees to allow parents and students to obtain information about exposures to toxins, and participate in decisions about how the toxins are dealt with. Trustees could commit to putting in place inventories and buying policies that would protect students from exposure at school.
The Students’ Environmental Bill of Rights would give students and parents the right to refuse to enter a classroom “where harmful substances are reasonably believed to ex ist.” Just as students are now entitled to “peanut-free” areas because of allergy potential, students would be informed and given a right to avoid exposure to an asthmagen, for instance, or a carcinogen such as formaldehyde, if the exposure could cause them harm.
And what are some of the health and environmental concerns associated with exposure to these chemicals? Some cleaning and maintenance products have been linked to learning disabilities, attention deficits and asthma. Some chemicals in science and art labs are associated with possible future reproductive problems, and some of the chemicals in these products are known carcinogens. Mercury from broken thermometers and lab spills in past years can create low levels of toxic mercury that can affect children’s neurological development.
There’s good reason to start resisting our exposure to this chemical trespass. Children are particularly vulnerable to the effects of toxic chemicals because of their higher metabolic rate and because their bodies are continuing to develop from birth until after puberty. Exposure to certain chemicals at critical times of development can have permanent effects throughout adulthood in terms of reproductive issues. The incidence of childhood cancer in Canada is up 28% since the 1970s. The growing rate of early puberty in girls as young as 7 and 8 is associated with chemical exposures, as are increasing incidents of asthma, autism and learning disorders in children.
Let’s work together to assert our rights to toxin-free schools for our children. Approach the school trustees in your district and ask them to show support and sign the Students’ Environmental Bill of Rights. Your trustees will either become champions for a toxin-free school, or they will show their colours and we can focus some efforts on educating them about these issues.
This initiative is supported by the BC Teachers’ Federation and many other staff who work in the schools.
Related classroom material
LEAS has produced a nine-unit Chemical Trespass Learning Resource package for classroom use in grades 8-11 science and social studies. In addition, the Chemical Trespass Taking Action Portfolio allows senior students to gather all their required portfolio credits with a series of activities, including school and home toxin audits, and work related to the volunteer, job, art, and information technology credits. A LEAS youth presenter will provide a 1-2 hour interactive workshop on chemical trespass.
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For further information contact the Labour Environmental Alliance Society, 1203 – 207 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, BC V6B 1H7 Ph: 604-669-1921. Email:info@leas.ca
[From WS November/December 2005]
