Oceano Community Health Survey

Agricultural lands surround the community of Oceano on the Central Coast of California. These towns are located at the interface of agricultural and urban land use areas. Thousands of pounds of pesticides are used on agricultural lands in and around this area every year. The area has been a hot spot for health complaints and reports of disease by community members for a number of years. Many residents feel that their health concerns are related to intensive pesticide use in the surrounding areas.

The goal of this project is to assess Oceano’s community perceptions of their environment and their health.

The following three areas were assessed:

1. Perceptions and attitudes in the community about environmental stressors.
2. Household members’ perceptions of their health
3. Household members’ recollection of specific illness or disease within the last calendar year.

The communities of Oceano are examples of the agricultural/urban interface, a phenomenon that lends itself to the exploration of how environmental stressors influence physical health. Environmental stressors include air quality, noise, traffic, pesticide use and water quality. Understanding community residents’ common concerns, opinions of and ideas about environmental stressors can help us better address community concerns and help direct our educational outreach efforts.

The California Endowment funded the Oceano Community Environmental and Health Assessment. Collaborative partners were Daniel Levi, Ph.D., interns Kathryn Sperry and Becky Logan, the Center for the Study of Latino Health and Culture of UCLA, Neighbors At Risk and many community volunteers.

For more information, view the complete Oceano Community Environmental and Health Assessment report.