Tobacco
Introduction
Clean Air Council has long been a leader in educating the public about and advocating for smoke-free initiatives in Pennsylvania. For nearly 20 years the Council has served as a provider of numerous innovative tobacco control services for the Pennsylvania Department of Health in Pennsylvania.
The Problem
Secondhand smoke comes from smoke breathed out by the person who smokes, and smoke from the end of a burning cigarette, cigar, pipe, or hookah. It contains over 7,000 chemicals that can cause diseases like asthma and respiratory infections. 200 of these chemicals are poisons and at least 69 cause cancer. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that secondhand smoke causes approximately 7,300 lung cancer deaths and 34,000 heart disease deaths in nonsmokers each year. One of the most frequent air quality problems the Council’s indoor air pollution experts hear about is smoking in living and working spaces. Smoke from one individual smoking in their apartment can travel to other non-smokers’ rooms in apartment buildings. It can permeate through ventilation systems, electrical fixtures and even cracks in walls. Smoking is also still allowed in hospitality venues in Pennsylvania including bars, restaurants, casinos, and private clubs, exposing hundreds of thousands of workers to the dangers of secondhand smoke.
Take Action
If you or someone you know are exposed to secondhand smoke, please contact the Council and let us know about the situation.
The Solution
Clean Air Council uses the latest science to convince smoke-free policy for owners of multi-unit housing, public housing authorities, residential homeowners’ associations, and private housing organizations to go smoke-free.
Current campaigns
For years, Council staff have educated businesses and the public about the health dangers of tobacco smoke and how to reduce exposure to secondhand smoke. As a pioneer in Pennsylvania for championing smoke-free policy in multi-unit housing, the Council meets with public housing authorities, residential homeowners’ associations and private housing organizations throughout Pennsylvania to help implement smoke-free policy to protect non-smokers, especially vulnerable populations including people living in public housing, children, and the elderly, from secondhand smoke.
Recent Successes
Clean Air Council has made some significant contributions to smoke-free living for hundreds of thousands of multi-unit housing residents:
- The Council developed a marketing campaign to assist the Philadelphia Housing Authority to go smoke free.
- Chester County Housing Authority, assisted by the Council, introduced Pennsylvania’s first tobacco-free policy on all of its property.
- The Council helped major housing organizations like Housing Development Corporation Mid Atlantic, the Galman Group, and many others to implement smoke-free policies.
- The Council has presented its initiative in national venues like the Society for Public Health Education’s 65th Annual Meeting and the Public Housing Authorities Directors Association Annual Meeting.
For more information about the Clean Air Council’s tobacco-free initiatives, contact Thurman Brendlinger at brendlinger@cleanair.org or 215-567-4004 ext. 104.
