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September 4, 2003

Several Bay Area communities are taking steps to create smoke-free public areas and workplaces, and the Contra Costa Tobacco Prevention Coalition will hear from a leader in this movement at its meeting Sept. 11 in Martinez.

Dian Kaiser is co-director of BREATH, the "California Smoke-Free Bars, Workplaces and Communities Program," which is a statewide project of the American Lung Association of the East Bay. She will give a talk to the Coalition titled "Clearing the Air: Creating Smoke-Free Outdoor Public Places."

"The mission of BREATH is to assist in the implementation and creation of policies to protect workers, tenants and the public from the toxic effects of second-hand smoke," said Janet Abbott, chair of the Coalition. "The coalition is very eager to hear from them."

"Creating smoke-free public places has been a longtime concern of our group and the Contra Costa community ," said Denice Dennis, manager of Contra Costa Health Services' Tobacco Prevention Project, which staffs the Coalition. "Many cities and organizations have taken steps to accomplish it, including Contra Costa Health Services, which has a smoke-free doorways policy."

The meeting is scheduled from 10 a.m. to noon Thursday, Sept. 11, in the Golden Gate Room of the Summit Center building, 2530 Arnold Dr. in Martinez. Other items on the Coalition's Sept. 11 agenda include updates on communities passing or considering the Tobacco Free Youth Ordinance or requiring licenses for tobacco merchants.

The Tobacco-Free Youth Ordinance, which limits tobacco self-service displays in stores, has already been passed by the county Board of Supervisors and the councils of 17 cities in Contra Costa. The Tobacco Prevention Coalition is composed of 19 different community groups and agencies. It meets every other month. For more information about the coalition or the county's Tobacco Prevention Project, call Denice Dennis at 925-313-6825.

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