Statement of Veronika Carella, Concerned parent and children's advocate

3124 Longfield Road, Glenwood, Maryland 21738

September 27, 2002

 

BACKGROUND

 

Children have the right grow to their full potential, both academically and physically.  Children have the right to a free and safe public education. For some families, these goals are growing increasingly difficult and sometimes impossible to obtain, because of the conditions that they face in their school environment.  I urge this committee to address the concerns presented today and safeguard our children while they attend school.

 

I respectfully present testimony as the parent of two children seriously and perhaps permanently injured by exposure to hazardous materials sustained while they attend public schools in Maryland.  My children unknowingly became hyper-sensitive to pesticides and some hazardous chemicals due to unintentional exposure at school to EPA-registered pesticides and other hazardous materials when they were young (1995-1998).  The resulting injuries have caused them to suffer serious illnesses and miss a significant number of schools days.  As a

family, we struggle with the physical, emotional and economic effects of their conditions everyday since they were exposed to these hidden school environment hazards.

 

Sadly, ours is not an isolated case. As a children's advocate and active PTA member in the State of Maryland, I have seen, heard, documented and testified to many horror stories from other families who suffer needlessly from harmful products used in their children's school environments. 

 

NEED FOR LEGISLATION

 

There is no system to protect children. We have personally found that school systems only do what they are legally required to do.  Ironically, because of the lack of legislative protections and funds to adequately maintain our public schools, my children and others continue to be exposed to known hazardous conditions and toxic products in their public schools.  The resulting injuries are unnecessary and pose an unacceptable risk to their potential to live full and healthy lives as adults.

 

Parents are required by law (Maryland) to send their children to public school, yet there is a distinct lack of legislative protection both on the state and federal level to safeguard children while they are at school.  Parents appear to be powerless to protect their children from known hazards in the school setting, thus schools environments continue to injure innocent and unsuspecting children and staff.

 

Every day there is the potential for chemical exposures.  Public school students and staff face hidden chemical assaults every day.  Children's small growing bodies cannot always process or tolerate the chemicals that we all use in our every day world.  This is especially true for certain hazardous pesticides, cleaning products and paints by many school systems.  Lower risk alternatives must be made available.

 


NEED FOR FUNDING

 

Solutions exist.  However, without legislation, school will not implement them.  Without funding schools sometimes cannot implement them.  There is a need for legislation and adequate funding to support such solutions such as least-toxic Integrated Pest Management (IPM) where school maintenance and repair reduce and often eliminate the need for chemical pest control methods. Without funding, search cannot continue on identifying low risk alternatives to the products we

know have the potential to harm our children.

 

I strongly encourage you to promptly fund and to implement the Healthy and High Performance Schools Act and strengthen EPA's school environment programs.  Thank you for your time and consideration.

 

Respectfully submitted by: 

 

Veronika Carella

Concerned parent and children's advocate

3124 Longfield Road, Glenwood, Maryland 21738

phone: 410-489-5495   email: jlcarella@msn.com

September 27, 2002