Division of Public Health, Bureau of Environmental and Occupational Health (BEOH)
About the Bureau
The mission of the Bureau of Environmental and Occupational Health (BEOH) is to ensure each person in Wisconsin can live, work, and play in healthy spaces by reducing and removing exposure to health hazards. To this end, BEOH provides tracking of environmental and occupational illness through disease surveillance programs, provides consultation to employers, local health agencies, and the public on many technical issues and promotes risk reduction through assessment, evaluation and control of environmental and occupational hazards.
The Bureau regulates and licenses x-ray equipment, radioactive materials and devices and certifies lead and asbestos workers and environmental health professionals.
BEOH has four sections:
- Environmental Epidemiology and Surveillance Section
- Hazard Assessment Section
- Lead and Asbestos Section, and
- Radiation Protection Section.
Environmental Epidemiology and Surveillance Section
The Environmental Epidemiology and Surveillance Section tracks environmental and occupational diseases and conditions, compiles and provides epidemiologic data, health education, and technical support for occupational health and safety, asthma, and other environmental issues.
Occupational health staff monitor adult lead poisoning along with occupational respiratory diseases and other work-related health hazards and provide prevention resources and information.
The section manages community projects that disseminate information on the health risks and benefits associated with fish consumption. The section also oversees a community-based program that provides in-home asthma education, environmental assessment, and home remediation of asthma triggers to Medicaid-eligible individuals.
Hazard Assessment Section
The Hazard Assessment Section focuses on recognition, evaluation, and control of human health hazards in the environment.
The section’s programs provide health risk assessments, health education, and technical support for a range of environmental health topics, including
- Harmful substances in water, soil, or air
- Radon
- Harmful algal blooms
- Cancer concerns and environmentally related reportable conditions
- The effects of extreme weather events and climate on the public’s health.
Toxicologists within the section prepare recommendations for groundwater and ambient air quality standards.
The section also maintains public health emergency response capability to address chemical and natural disasters.
Lead and Asbestos Section
The Lead and Asbestos Section prepares policies and guidance on childhood lead poisoning case management and follow-up and develops statewide prevention strategies.
As part of this, the section collects all blood lead test results for children under the age of 16 in the state and provides grants to local health departments to fund local lead poisoning and exposure prevention efforts.
The section manages three programs to identify and fix lead hazards in childcares and/or residential properties. And finally, the section regulates the certified lead and asbestos workforce and lead and asbestos companies in Wisconsin to ensure that:
- A property trained and certified workforce is available to inspect for, manage, and abate lead and asbestos hazards in housing and child-occupied facilities
- Renovations and abatements are conducted in a lead- and asbestos safe manner, and
- Occupants and the public are protected.
Radiation Protection Section
The Radiation Protection Section works to minimize ionizing radiation exposure to occupationally exposed workers and member of the public.
The section has three units specializing in X-ray devices and mammography facilities, radioactive materials and devices, and radiological emergency preparedness and environmental monitoring.
Staff register and license sources of radiation, conduct inspection and enforcement activities, monitor for environmental releases of radioactivity, and conduct emergency planning and preparedness activities with local state and federal partners.
The section maintains emergency response capability for nuclear power plant incidents, transportation accidents involving radioactive material, and potential acts of terrorism involving radioactive materials.
Our partners
The Bureau has key relationships with local health departments, community-based organizations, private voluntary organizations, academic and health care provider networks. The Bureau maintains strong working relationships with small employers, utilities, housing industry, and the labor sector.
Contact us
Mark Werner, Director
1 W. Wilson, Room 150
Madison, WI 53701
Bureau Reception: 608-266-1120
Bureau Fax: 608-267-4853