Jackson Discusses Health Effects of Conventional Urban Planning, Addresses Resignation
Conventional urban planning -- which often requires travel by automobile and lacks walking or biking paths -- contributes to increased rates of obesity, hypertension, depression and stress, Public Health Officer Richard Jackson said in a speech on Wednesday in Modesto, the Modesto Bee reports. Jackson, the co-author of a book on the health effects of urban sprawl, said that urban planning should include:
- Safe walking paths to schools;
- School gardens where students can grow nutritious foods;
- Walking paths in subdivisions; and
- Attractive stairways in office buildings.
Jackson will resign from his position as public health officer next week. After his speech on Wednesday, Jackson said that politics contributed to his decision to resign, the Bee reports.
Jackson said, "The resources are limited, the work is overwhelming, and the antipathy between the political parties and the branches of government is paralytic."
Jackson plans to teach at the University of California-Berkeley (Carlson, Modesto Bee, 6/23).