Flooding fear Question 4
mtebbeIn response to
Some residents of flooded homes in Three Rivers/Woodlake blame new housing developments that replaced orchards and a creek bed for recent flooding
Flooding fear Question 5
mtebbeIn response to
Farmers drove pickup trucks loaded with dirt into a breached levee, then covered the trucks with dirt
Bridging Gaps in Publicly Accessible Data
Carly.RospertAnnotation of
How are Data Gaps Worked Around:
Sarnia, and the surrounding area around chemical valley, have 9 air monitoring stations in which air pollutants are monitored from the nearby petrochemical complex. Until 2017, only data from one of these stations (the one on Christina Street in downtown Sarnia) was publicly available. This created a gap in accessiblility of important data for sarnia and the nearby AFN residents. In September 2015, the Clean Air Sarnia and Area group launched as a "community advisory panel made up of representatives from the public, government, First Nations, and industry, who are dedicated to providing the community with a clear understanding of ambient air quality in the Sarnia area." This group works to improve air quality in Sarnia by making information about air quality publicly available and by making recommendations to relevant authorities. In 2018, this group launched the website: https://reporting.cleanairsarniaandarea.com/ (also uploaded as an artifact) which allows public to access data from the air quality monitoring stations and understand how air quality compares to Ontario's standards. This site works to fill the gap of publicly available air quality data in Sarnia.
Standards Undercutting Safety
Carly.RospertAnnotation of
In response to
This report from Ecojustice shows a decline in air pollution compared to Ecojustice's first report released in 2007 for the area around Chemical Valley, yet Sarnia industries continue "to release far more pollution, and in particular far more SO2 , than comparable U.S. refineries." One contributor to the continued excessive emissions is Ontario's lagging air quality standards. The report notes that "Ontario’s AAQC and air quality standards are lagging behind current science on the health impacts of air pollutants, which may put the health of residents at risk." The report highlights pollutants where Ontario's standard is above the national standard or where Ontario has no standard at all. Additionally, Sarnia's benzene emissions are exempt from Ontario's health-based standard for this chemical and are instead regulated by "an industry technical-based standard" allowing benzene levels to be far higher than the health-based standard. The lagging, lack of, or exemption from regulation undercut efforts in monitoring and reducing emissions to a "safe" level as what is considered "safe" by standards is out of line with what is considered "safe" by health and other standards.
pece_annotation_1479068480
jaostranderAnnotation of
In response to
Figure 1 was built to serve members of the medical community. It was developed to share unique medical conditions and discuss diseases amongst doctors, nurses, and students.
pece_annotation_1479068796
jaostranderAnnotation of
In response to
Healthcare professionals, from all levels, doctors to even students, are invited to share and discuss conditions and diseases.
pece_annotation_1479068850
jaostranderAnnotation of
In response to
The Figure 1 website does not specify how the development of the system was funded.
pece_annotation_1479069531
jaostranderAnnotation of
In response to
Verified members can post pictures of patient's, tests, equipment, or images as long as there is not patient identifying information. All members of figure one are encouraged to comment and discuss the condition or test in the picture.
pece_annotation_1479069704
jaostranderAnnotation of
In response to
Users can access the site from a computer or there is an app available for smart phones.
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jaostranderAnnotation of
This system would be difficult to work with because it publicises patient's conditions even if it does not directly identify who they are. Some of the diseases or conditions these patients are faced with can be considered humiliating and while the intent of the app is to be educational, a healthcare professionals are faced with the ethical decision as to whether or not post the picture of their patient. A guideline Figure 1 outlines is that before taking and posting a picture the provider should have consent from the patient. Hospitals, clinics, agency, ect. are also faced with whether to allow their members to engage in these activities as patient confidentiality could be called into question.