The priority of the Bureau of Environmental Health Services is to improve the quality of life in Shelby County by controlling pollutants in the air, assuring a safe supply of water and food, and eliminating general environmental hazards. This bureau uses diverse methods and programs for a wide variety of purposes, such as enforcing sanitation codes in swimming pools and restaurants, inspecting health care facilities such as nursing homes, handling more than 20,000 citizens complaints of environmental pollution and deficiency, inspecting water fountains for lead poisoning, inspecting vacant or abandoned property to prevent pests from breeding there, and controlling mosquitoes, rats and other pests.