Wisconsin’s Site Evaluation Program: Increasing Tenant and Homeowner Environmental Health Literacy Mini-Grant

Chemical list

Many types of natural and man-made substances can have negative human health effects depending on the nature of a person's exposure to them. Browse this page for a comprehensive list of substances that can negatively impact health.

Indoor air

Our indoor air quality can be impacted in many ways. Sometimes there are actions we can take to prevent ourselves from getting sick. Our Breathe Easily fact sheet, P-02166 provides ideas to protect against common indoor air pollutants.

Drinking water

Whether drinking or eating something that came from it, water can have an impact on your health in a variety of ways. If you are looking for information about a specific chemical in your water, check out the Chemical List. Visit our Drinking Water webpage for more information on water quality in private wells and public water systems.

Soil quality

Sometimes there are harmful chemicals in the soil that can make it unsafe for gardening, children's playtime, or other uses. Certain types of chemicals that were dumped from nearby industry can move through the soil and enter the indoor air of basements and other rooms in a home in a process called vapor intrusion. Visit our Soil Quality webpage for more information on soil hazards from nearby or on-site industry, agriculture, and other sources of widespread chemical use.

Environmental Public Health Tracking: County Environmental Health Profiles

Find reports of the data that provides a snapshot of a county's environmental health. Focus on key aspects of community health, private water quality, home hazards, health conditions, and environmental justice.

Environmental Justice Index (EJI) Explorer

This tool from the Environmental Protection Agency uses data from various federal agencies to rank the cumulative impacts of environmental injustice on health for every census tract. It ranks each tract on 36 environmental, social, and health factors and groups them into three overarching modules and ten different domains.

Environmental Health Tracking: Ideas for Taking Action

This content contains strategies and action steps for addressing environmental health topics, like air quality, carbon monoxide, and lead poisoning.

Community Engagement Activities

This tool contains strategies for implementing activities that will make changes in your community. You can navigate each section on the left side bar.

Tribal Lead Curriculum

This example curriculum creates a starting point to hold conversations and empower individuals to act within their own homes to protect their children and communities from potential lead exposure.

This project entailed the development and distribution of a booklet for new homeowners and tenants with detailed information on environmental health risks in and around the home. The purpose of this booklet is to promote awareness and encourage prevention of harmful environmental health exposures. It will provide the target populations with one easy to read resource that will cover a variety of topics. By working closely with partners such as real estate agents and home inspectors, Eau Claire City-County Health Department will be able to distribute the booklet to new homeowners and tenants during the homebuying and rental processes.

This project entailed the development and delivery of training for human services professionals to educate them on environmental health hazards and local environmental health resources. The goal is that professionals will be better able to support their clients and other community members facing environmental health hazards in their homes. The project included the development of a training presentation and resource guide featuring local services. The training focused on environmental health hazards, including radon, mold, lead, well water, and pests. The training provided attendees with information on how environmental health hazards can be prevented, testing options, as well as what to do and who to contact if these hazards are identified.

Iowa County Health Department became a DATCAP certified Well Water Testing Laboratory in 2023. This project proposed to implement an educational awareness and testing campaign to promote their new community lab resource and educate the community on the importance of understanding the quality of water they drink. The campaign included outreach through billboards, print and radio ads as well as assistance residents who may struggle to physically collect a water specimen. Collaborative partners included the Land Conservation Department, UW Extension, Aging and Disability Resource Center, local media partners, libraries, and others.

This three-part project built on Wauwatosa Health Department's current lead in water test kit program, aiming to increase community education and knowledge of available lead in water test kits. First, they enhanced their current program by sustaining the availability of lead in water test kits for City of Wauwatosa homeowners and residents. Second, they launched a new and innovative educational social media campaign about lead in water and the availability of lead in water test kits for Wauwatosa homeowners and tenants. Third, they allowed for easier access to test kits through promotion at community events and an accessible display in the Wauwatosa library. These efforts significantly improved environmental health literacy and lead water testing rates for Wauwatosa homeowners and tenants, creating a safer and healthier community.

This well water survey distribution project will be led by community health workers from HOLA, Inc. The overarching purpose of the survey is to augment understanding of community-specific gaps in knowledge about private well water testing and barriers that prevent regular well water testing in Hispanic, Hmong, and rural households in Marathon, Clark, Taylor, Lincoln, Langlade, Shawano, Portage, and Wood Counties. The survey was developed by the Wisconsin Institute for Public Policy and Service (WIPPS) and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to help inform the development of community-specific outreach about water quality and related health issues, which was occurring through an EPA-funded Environmental Justice Government-to-Government (EJG2G) grant. The primary role of community health workers will be to distribute and administer the survey in their communities to aid WIPPS in obtaining perspectives from people that are often not reached through public health. HOLA also plans to partner with county health departments for distribution of water test kits via the WellTAP program.

This project will expand MKE FreshAir Collective’s programming to encompass common indoor air contaminants. They will develop a broad-reaching educational initiative focused on radon and vapor intrusion, prioritizing low-income Black and Brown communities in Milwaukee. This project will distribute at-home radon tests to individuals who live in ZIP codes with disproportionately low testing compared to surrounding areas. MKE FreshAir Collective will collaborate with local neighborhood and community groups to deliver educational sessions in targeted ZIP codes focused on the common indoor air contaminants radon and vapor intrusion. In addition to in-person educational sessions, they will develop a comprehensive educational campaign focused on radon and vapor intrusion, including: handouts and materials for workshops and community events; a dedicated webpage featuring educational material and local resources; and a series of targeted social media posts.

This project aims to host educational workshops in high-risk areas to educate residents on getting children and adults tested. They will create educational materials that are culturally relevant and accessible. Newcap will convene community members to assist in the development of a Community Plan profile to use when providing workshops on these topics discussed and will provide practical demonstrations of fixes and maintenance. Brown County Public Health Department and all tribal health departments, community members, Oneida Family Services, Streu’s Pharmacy, Menominee Tribal Clinic, CESA 7 Head Start, Green Bay Area Schools Head Start, iCare Independent Health Care Plan, Bellin Health + Gunderson Healthcare System, Casa Alba Melanie will support this project by hosting workshops for their clients onsite.

Wisconsin Ecolatinos will design a comprehensive outreach program that is proactive and accessible in partnership with community leaders and local agencies in their target area. The hazards they intend to address include a range of environmental and indoor air quality concerns that pose significant health risks to residents. These include carbon monoxide, mold, particulate matter, radon, secondhand smoke, nitrogen dioxide, and chemical irritants. They will actively engage people in community events, workshops, and a digital campaign. The program will include bilingual, easy-to-understand infographic material and demonstrations on “how to” implement measures to improve indoor air quality and create a healthy home environment.