APPLETREE Highlights: Strengthening State Capacity to Protect Community Health

Vollständiger Abstract

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Strong state and local capacity is essential for identifying, assessing, and preventing harmful environmental exposures. This column highlights recent activities and accomplishments of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry’s Partnership to Promote Local Efforts to Reduce Environmental Exposure (APPLETREE) program, which supports 30 state health departments in addressing hazardous substance exposures. Through site assessments, technical assistance, community engagement, health education, and applied prevention science, APPLETREE partners translate environmental health evidence into actions that protect communities. Examples from Connecticut, Ohio, Utah, Georgia, and Oregon demonstrate how states are addressing hazards such as vapor intrusion, lead, radon, and contaminated seafood while developing locally responsive prevention strategies. Collectively, these efforts illustrate how sustained investment in state capacity, partnerships, and applied environmental health practice can help communities prevent harmful exposures and respond to evolving environmental health challenges.