Healthy Community Policies Impact Whatcom County
Submission Date: December 2009
State/Territory Submitted on the Behalf of: Washington
States/Territories Involved: Washington
Domain Addressed:Environmental Approaches
Public Health Issue:- Chronic disease and health risk factors in Whatcom County are more prevalent among populations impacted by poverty and socioeconomic disparities.
- Children living in poverty have higher rates of overweight, obesity, exposure to second-hand smoke and poor nutritional intake.Ā For example, half of Whatcom County 10th graders donāt get the recommended amount of daily physical activity.
- Whatcom County was selected to receive funding for the Action Communities for Health, Innovation, and EnVironmental ChangE (ACHIEVE) Initiative, part of a Healthy Communities partnership with the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, National Association of Chronic Disease Directors, YMCA of USA, National Association of City and County Health Official, and National Recreation and Parks Association.
- Whatcom ACHIEVE organized for policy and environmental change to create a community thatās more walkable, has increased access to healthy food and lower tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke.
- Whatcom ACHIEVE leveraged $30,000 to train community leaders in applying health equity principles to community development and $25,000 from the National Park Service to support communities and groups to plan for pedestrian, bicycle and recreation improvements.
- The ACHIEVE process positioned Whatcom to leverage $274,000 in Community Transformation Grant funds to become the regional hub for the NW Washington Healthy Communities Project, making them a provider of technical assistance and a major contributor to comprehensive land use planning.
- ACHIEVE staff collaborated to develop project criteria adopted as part of the Bellingham Pedestrian Plan.
- In a partnership with the Council of Governments, they trained most county/city engineers/city planners in walkable-community planning for āSafe & Healthy Streetsā
- ACHIEVEās identified action goals for creating healthy neighborhoods are now part of the countyās Community Health Improvement Plan.
Healthy Communities (general), Other
State Contact Information:
WA
Melissa Morin
Whatcom County Health Department
360-676-6724 ext. 32027
mmorin@whatcomcounty.us