MaryPIRG Foundation released a report in December to evaluate two key questions: just how bad are the threats to children’s environmental health and how much has the state done in response.

We found that Maryland has adopted only a few of the many powerful policies available to reduce toxic exposure. The state has taken some important steps in the right direction, but still has a long way to go toward protecting children's environmental health.

Below are some of the key findings of our report, Maryland Children’s Environmental Health Report Card.

Mercury
Risk: Mercury is a neurotoxin that can cause numerous developmental and learning disorders.

Status: A 2004 study by EPA found that one in six American women of childbearing age has levels of mercury that could potentially damage a developing fetus. Given levels of mercury in fish in Maryland, exposure here is probably at least as high as the national average.

Response: The state has not adopted strong mercury emission standards for power plants, by far the most important step in reducing mercury pollution.

Lead
Risk: Children who live in homes built before 1977 may be exposed to lead, which can cause learning disorders, behavior problems and delayed growth.

Status: More than 200,000 Maryland children under age 6 are at risk of lead poisoning. In Baltimore City, 12% of children tested had elevated levels of lead.

Response: Only half of rental housing that is likely to contain lead paint has been registered and only a portion of at-risk children are tested for blood lead levels in accordance with state law.

Pesticides
Risk: Pesticides are used in homes, schools and playgrounds, and are found everywhere children go. Studies have linked cancer, birth and neurological defects, sterility and asthma to pesticides.

Status: Based on the most recent data available, 17 million pounds of pesticides were used throughout Maryland in a single year. Some schools have reduced their pesticide use on school grounds, but others have not.

Response: While the state is requiring that schools use techniques to limit their reliance on pesticides, poor implementation of the program has severely limited its effectiveness.

Air pollution
Risk: Smog causes asthma, impairs lung growth and increases infant deaths. Soot has been linked with heart disease and cancer.

Status: Fourteen Maryland counties and Baltimore City exceed federal smog standards and eleven counties and Baltimore City exceed soot standards. During this past summer, the 8-hour smog standard was exceeded 78 times in Maryland. More than 150,000 children in Maryland suffer from asthma and one-third of them having missed school because of it.

Response: The state has done woefully little to reduce air pollution from the two largest sources: power plants and motor vehicles. The Ehrlich administration has lobbied hard against new clean air protections.