The possibility that exposure to environmental toxins or contaminants can actually cause neurological disorders, birth defects, cancers, or other health problems continues to be an anathema to most politicians and public servants alike. When it comes to updating and enforcing environmental standards that are designed to be protective of public health, the response is snail-like.

When a naturally occurring toxin, industrial contaminant, or pesticide is put forth as the possible cause of health problems in a population, too many politicians turn away. The response can range from dismissal or denial to inaction or foot-dragging, and in some instances – the vilification of those who raise the alarm.

If there is a possibility that neurological disorders, birth defects, cancers or other health problems may have an environmental cause, it needs to be investigated. Instead, a political fear factor comes into play.

Think of the early onset neurological decline we have seen in hundreds of New Brunswickers who have presented with an unusual mix of symptoms in significant clusters. When one of the distinguished scientists on the short-lived federal-provincial task force publicly raised the idea that the neurotoxin BMAA should be examined as one possible risk factor, the government of the day pulled the plug on that collaboration.

BMAA is an amino acid produced by blue-green algae, also known as cyanobacteria. Its potential role in various neurodegenerative disorders is the subject of scientific research internationally, but not in New Brunswick, despite the increasing incidence of blue-green algal blooms in our fresh and saltwater.

Many New Brunswickers will remember the Gallant government’s firing, without cause, of the late Dr. Eilish Cleary, our former Chief Medical Officer of Health. Her office had been working on a public report about the health risks of glyphosate. As if to ensure they didn’t continue to carry out these kinds of investigations, the Health Minister of the day gutted the Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Health of its expert staff, eliminating both its environmental health unit and population health group. These actions effectively undermined the capacity of the Chief Medical Officer of Health to protect our health from environmental factors.

Think of the high rate of radon gas in New Brunswick homes. Once testing revealed that one out of three New Brunswick households had levels of this carcinogenic gas above the maximum acceptable levels, there should have been a robust response to ensure all homes were tested and to provide financial help to fix the problem for those who needed it. Public health was unable to step up.

It has taken years, and the tireless advocacy of the New Brunswick Lung Association, and an opposition party motion in the Legislature to finally get the government to agree to establish a universally accessible testing program. There is still no help to fix the problem homes. Radon gas exposure is the second leading cause of lung cancer.

This problem also manifests itself in upgrading or adding health-based standards for contaminants in the water we drink and the air we breathe. It took me years of shining a light on the outdated indoor air quality standards for industrial workplaces in New Brunswick to have the government finally increase them to properly protect the health of workers.

In 2019, the federal government set a new health-based drinking water guideline for exposure to manganese, a natural occurring metal in well-water, to protect infants and children. Regular exposure to manganese above this level in drinking water, or baby formula mixed with that water, had been found to interfere with normal cognitive development leading to low IQs and behaviour problems. Yet New Brunswick has yet to adopt the federal guideline and has no target date to do so. Instead, it continues to treat manganese in water as an aesthetic issue that discolours water and stains laundry.

Just look at how tight-lipped the new government has been about the massive contamination of the aquifer below a restaurant and coffee shop in Woodstock by 100,000 litres of diesel fuel. It’s been three months since it came to light, when a customer smelled petroleum fumes wafting from the taps when they washed their hands or filled sippy cups for their kids.

In New Brunswick, there is a terrible history of neglect when it comes to protecting public health from environmental contaminants. It’s why our party is introducing a bill in the Legislature on March 25^th to establish a right to a healthy environment and provide citizens with legislative and legal tools to enforce it.

David Coon is the Leader of the New Brunswick Green Party and the MLA for Fredericton-Lincoln