Environmental Division

Environmental Health and Protection is the branch of public health that is concerned with all aspects of the natural and man-made environment that may affect human health. Other terms that concern or refer to the discipline of environmental health include environmental public health, environmental health and environmental sanitation.

Environmental Health Definition
Environmental health is defined by the World Health Organization as, "those aspects of the human health and disease that are determined by factors in the environment. It also refers to the theory and practice of assessing and controlling factors in the environment that can potentially affect health".
Our Issues
Environmental health practitioners may be known as sanitarians, public health inspectors, environmental public health specialists, environmental health officers or environmental health practitioners. In St. Charles County, environmental health and protection is a collaborative endeavor, addressing issues in our area concerning:
  • Air quality, including both ambient outdoor air and indoor air quality
  • Body art safety, including tattooing, body piercing and permanent cosmetics
  • Food safety, including food service permits, inspections and public safety
  • Hazardous materials management
  • Medical waste management and disposal
  • Recreational water illness prevention, including from swimming pools, spas
  • Water quality, including safe drinking water, storm water runoff and county waterways
  • Solid waste management, including landfills, recycling facilities, composting and solid waste transfer stations
  • Vector control, including the control of mosquitoes, rodents, flies, cockroaches and other animals that may transmit pathogens.
Please call the Division of Environmental Health and Protection at 636-949-1800 if you have concerns with any of the issues listed above. Although the division may not have direct oversight over the issue, we will direct you to the appropriate agency whenever possible.