The Ontario County Public Health web site regularly receives questions and comments on area restaurants and food safety. Food can cause illness in a variety of ways. Improper food preparation, failure to keep areas where food preparation takes place clean, serving foods that are spoiled, can all result in food borne illness. Food safety is a major priority of environmental health specialists.

There are other potential health risks related to the environment. Where we live, the chemicals that we are exposed to, the food that we eat, the temperature at which food is stored, and the water that we drink all have an effect our quality of life. The field of environmental health looks at the impact that these factors have on our health.

These specialists also work to protect people from environmental hazards such as radon, lead and asbestos. These substances cause many life threatening illnesses. Because they are invisible to the naked eye, their detection may require special testing of the individual who may have been exposed or of the environment that might have exposed them. This is another major priority of environmental health.

Federal, State, County and Local governments all share responsibility for protecting citizens from health hazards in the environment. In Ontario County, the Public Health Department does not have any environmental health specialists. Instead, they work closely with regional Office of the New York State Department of Health to address these concerns. Some situations also require the involvement of the Federal Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). Others are addressed by town or village code officers.

The lead agency in Ontario County for the investigation of environmental hazards is the regional Office of the New York State Department of Health, located in Geneva, New York. They inspect restaurants; they review applications for water systems to ensure access to clean water, they inspect homes that contain large amounts of lead-based paint and develop a plan to reduce those levels. Questions about mold, on the other hand, should be directed to town or village code officers.

To ask questions and / or report your concerns about food and water safety or other environmental hazards, contact the Geneva Regional office of the New York State Department of Health at 315 789-3030. If the environmental issue you are concerned about does not fall under their jurisdiction, they will direct you to the agency that does.

Environmental Health Links

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

Information about E. coli 0157: H7