The following information was provided by EPA in conjunction with the opportunity for public comment on the draft indicators for ACE3, which ran from March 8 – April 21, 2011. The public comment period is now closed.

Pollutants or contaminants that can affect the health of children can be found in air, water, food, and soil. Furthermore, characteristics of children’s environments, such as unusually high temperatures, can also have adverse health effects. Tracking environmental contaminants and characteristics over time can indicate the successes and shortcomings of efforts to protect children’s health, and also identify opportunities for future action. Differences between demographic groups can identify children whose health may be particularly at risk.

The draft indicators for America’s Children and the Environment, Third Edition (ACE3) include environment and contaminant indicators that were developed using data collected by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the National Climatic Data Center. The ACE3 environment and contaminant indicators summarize data for environmental contaminants and characteristics that may have adverse effects on children’s health.

A separate draft document is available for each ACE3 environment and contaminant topic. Each document includes an introduction describing the importance of the topic to children’s environmental health. The document also includes a section describing how the indicators were calculated. Data for each indicator are presented in a graph. Most of the indicators present time series data. Where data over time are unavailable, the indicators present data for the most recent year available and in some cases provide comparisons across demographic groups. Beneath each figure are explanatory bullet points highlighting key findings. Following the indicator figures and bullet points, each document provides data tables, references, metadata, and details of how the indicators were calculated.

Detailed background on the ACE3 environments and contaminants indicators

THIS INFORMATION IS DISTRIBUTED SOLELY FOR THE PURPOSE OF PRE-DISSEMINATION PEER REVIEW UNDER APPLICABLE INFORMATION QUALITY GUIDELINES. IT HAS NOT BEEN FORMALLY DISSEMINATED BY EPA. IT DOES NOT REPRESENT AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSTRUED TO REPRESENT ANY AGENCY DETERMINATION OR POLICY.

The ACE3 environment and contaminant indicators address the following topics:

• Criteria Air Pollutants (PDF)(43 pp, 3 MB)
• Hazardous Air Pollutants (PDF)(19 pp, 420 K)
• Indoor Environments (PDF)(44 pp, 923 K)
• Drinking water Contaminants (PDF)(28 pp, 779 K)
• Food Contaminants (PDF)(23 pp, 351 K)
• Contaminated Lands (PDF)(26 pp, 1 MB)
• Climate Change (PDF)(19 pp, 405 K)