6.0 Other Considerations Required by CEQA/NEPA
PROTECTION OF CHILDREN FROM ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH RISKS AND
6.6
SAFETY RISKS
On April 21, 1997 President Clinton signed Executive Order 13045, Protection of Children From
Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks (62 Fed. Reg. 19885 (1997)). The policy of the Executive
Order states that:
A growing body of scientific knowledge demonstrates that children may suffer
disproportionately from environmental health risks and safety risks. These risks arise
because: children's neurological, immunological, digestive, and other bodily systems are
still developing; children eat more food, drink more fluids, and breathe more air in
proportion to their body weights than adults; children's size and weight may diminish their
protection from standard safety features; and children's behavior patterns may make them
more susceptible to accidents because they are less able to protect themselves. Therefore,
to the extent permitted by law and appropriate, and consistent with the agency's mission,
each Federal agency:
(a)
shall make it a high priority to identify and assess environmental health risks and
safety risks that may disproportionately affect children; and
(b)
ensure that its policies, programs, activities, and standards address disproportionate
risks to children that result from environmental health risks or safety risks.
There would be no disproportionate impacts to children during implementation of the proposed sand
replenishment project. No significant impacts would occur and there is no indication that any impacts
would disproportionately accrue to children. Areas of replenishment would be restricted during project
implementation for safety reasons and no long-term effects would occur after the beach areas were
reopened for public use. Air quality impacts would be experienced on a regional basis rather than a
localized basis and no disproportionate impacts to children are anticipated. Short-term noise impacts
during construction are likely to extend into neighborhoods off-site (as discussed in Section 4.14), but there
is no evidence that children are likely to be subject to disproportionate impacts through learning disruption.
In summary, no disproportionate impacts to environmental health risks and/or safety risks to children are
likely to occur with project implementation.
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