Introduction to the Community Involvement Section – Good Communication Is Critical to the Process

Each community near a hazardous waste site has different needs. At some sites, community members have many health concerns and want to be active in the public health assessment process. At other sites, community members are not as concerned about the site’s effect on their health.

Open communication between the public health assessment team and community members is critical to the process. Without good communication, the public health assessment team might miss important information to help evaluate health issues, and some community concerns could go unanswered.

This section explains how the public health assessment team involves the community from the beginning of a site investigation to the end of the investigation. In developing community involvement activities, the public health assessment team might focus on the following topics.

Topic 2.1

Defining the community and identifying initial contacts.

Topic 2.2

Developing ways to communicate with community members.

Topic 2.3

Ensuring clear presentation of information between the community and the team.