Note: [1] This article is based on a paper presented at the UNECE work session on “methodological issues of environmental statistics” (Ottawa, 1–4 October 2001) and builds from a research project carried out by Environment Canada, Health Canada and the Canadian Institute for Health Information. The author acknowledges valuable input from Bill Jarvis, Sheryl Bartlett, Annick LeHénaff, and Carmen Connolly. The views and opinions expressed in this article are exclusively those of the author and should not be taken to necessarily represent views of the Government of Canada.
Abstract: This article examines issues relating to the development of indicators for environmental public health in Canada. It recommends using a variation of the pressure-state-response model developed by the World Health Organization, and focuses on biophysical aspects of human interactions with the environment. It proposes four issues as the starting point for developing indicators: air, water, land and food, while recognizing that these are only a sub-set of the issues. The article suggests that the development and use of indicators in environmental public health is an important, although still very nascent, field.
