Anti-Smoking Law In Public Places Protects Nonsmokers
By Dan Bowen, CFAY Public Affairs

Expanding on the 2002 Kenkouzoushinhou, or Health Promotion Law, which banned smoking in central government and other public buildings, Kanagawa prefecture enacted the Kanagawa Prefectural Government Ordinance on Prevention of Exposure to Secondhand Smoke in Public Facilities.

The ordinance sets concrete rules and regulations for facility managers to follow in regards to smoking in public spaces and will also set fines for individuals smoking in nonsmoking areas and for facility managers who do not comply with the new ordinance.

According to the ordinance, public areas are divided into class 1 and class 2 facilities. Class 1 facilities, which include, schools, hospitals, theaters, movie theaters, sports facilities, retail shops, financial institutions and et cetera, will not allow smoking anywhere on the premises and will be required to post no smoking signs at the entrances of the facilities. Additionally, any facilities that allow smoking in designated smoking areas will be required to ensure that smoke in the smoking area is properly ventilated out of the building and does not enter into designated nonsmoking areas.

The ordinance is intended to protect nonsmokers and especially minors under the age of 20 from the harmful chemicals that are present in secondhand smoke. According to the website www.tobaccoatlas.org, secondhand smoke remains one of the world’s most critical environmental health hazards, leading all other lethal indoor air contaminants - including wood fires, asbestos particles and radon. Smoke-free policies are necessary to protect children from a serious health hazard - environmental tobacco smoke. In order to protect every child’s right to a healthy future, adult smoking needs to be highly regulated or eliminated, especially among parents and expectant parents.

The National Cancer Institute lists the harmful consequences of exposure to secondhand smoke on their Web site, www.cancer.gov. According to the site, The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. National Toxicology Program, the U.S. Surgeon General and the International Agency for Research on Cancer have classified secondhand smoke as a known human carcinogen (cancer-causing agent). Inhaling secondhand smoke causes lung cancer in nonsmoking adults.

Approximately 3,000 lung cancer deaths occur each year among adult nonsmokers in the United States as a result of exposure to secondhand smoke. The surgeon general estimates that living with a smoker increases a nonsmoker’s chances of developing lung cancer by 20 to 30 percent. Secondhand smoke may increase the risk of heart disease by an estimated 25 to 30 percent. In the United States, secondhand smoke is thought to cause about 46,000 heart disease deaths each year. Nonsmokers exposed to secondhand smoke at home or at work increase their heart disease risk by 25 to 30 percent and lung cancer risk by at least 20 to 30 percent.