Small Town News

Report says secondhand smoke polluting countys public places

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10 indoor venues were tested for air quality

The Green River District Health Department released a secondhand smoke report on Monday that revealed poor air quality in most Ohio County businesses that allow their patrons to light up.

According to the report, 10 hospitality venues -- made up of restaurants and stores -- were visited around the county between May 8 and May 17 to test the pollutants in the air caused by secondhand smoke.

The data, collected by the University of Kentucky, showed that the air inside those businesses was on average 3.3 times as polluted as the National Ambient Air Quality Standard for outdoor air.

Shannon Ross, a founding member of the OC Smoke-free Coalition, brought the findings to a press conference at the Ohio County Extension Service.

Ross said as a mother she was concerned with the health risks involved in exposing children to secondhand smoke.

"I have a desire to breathe carcinogen-free air in Ohio County," Ross said.

The air in each business was tested for at least 45 minutes with a Personal Aerosol Monitor machine, which assesses the particulate matter (PM) levels in the room. Anything above a 35 PM is considered unhealthy by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Out of the 10 businesses monitored, only two met the EPA's healthy air standards. The remaining eight are ranged between 44 PM to 369 PM. The average among the 10 businesses was 115 PM.

Heather Robertson, manager and program administrator for the Kentucky Center for Smoke-free Policy, said there were 250 chemicals known to be toxic in secondhand smoke.

"Sixty of those (250 chemicals) are known to be cancer causing agents," Robertson said. "We also know that many, many people die not from just smoking but from secondhand smoke. There are 3,000 (secondhand smoke) deaths from lung cancer per year."

Along with cancer, secondhand smoke is a known contributor of heart disease and triggers asthma.

Dr. Janna Pathi, a speaker at the event, said he was a former smoker who quit the habit in 1994.

"My second daughter was cutting her birthday cake and as I was taking her picture it hit me all of a sudden," Pathi said. "I realized that she needs me more than I need these cigarettes."

The report's main objective was to show the local businesses and the community the harmful pollutants circulating in the air as people eat, socialize and shop.

Paul Kiser, director of Kentucky ACTION, said his group advocates for smoke-free public environments whether its voluntarily by the business owner or through laws that ban smoking in all public venues.

"It is very simple to get secondhand smoke out of the air with the courage of policy-makers in the county who want to do something about it," Kiser said.

The report compared Ohio County, which does not have any local ordinances against smoking in public places, to Letcher County, a similar rural community, and the city of Louisville, both of which have passed comprehensive anti-smoking laws.

Prior to Letcher County passing ordinances against smoking in a public places, it had an average of 67 PM. After the law, it dropped to 17 PM. Louisville's comprehensive law against smoking in public places went from an air quality of 338 PM to 9 PM.

Kiser said business owners argue they will lose customers if they prohibit smoking.

"We're here to tell (the businesses) that there is not one single conclusive study based on quantitative data that shows any decline in revenues to businesses," Kiser said. "When you look at the science and you look at the facts, there is no economic downturn to making air quality healthier for all people."

Vallorie Tanner, who owns a chain of McDonald's franchises with her husband, Vince, said the Beaver Dam McDonald's went smoke-free voluntarily nine years ago.

"We did have some customers who left us the second we chose to do that but we had other customers who were very happy that they could come in and not feel like they were exposing themselves and their kids to the smoke," Tanner said. "In terms of have our sales suffered, no, I don't believe so."



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© 2009 The Ohio County Times-News Hartford, Kentucky. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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