Houston Democrats

Here's what the EPA has to say about lead: "Lead is a highly toxic metal that was used for many years in products found in and around our homes. Lead may cause a range of health effects, from behavioral problems and learning disabilities, to seizures and death. Children 6 years old and under are most at risk, because their bodies are growing quickly."

The following is from www.bushgreenwatch.org:

"There is more than a little irony here. The EPA--the same agency that took lead out of gasoline--is now weakening any attempt to eliminate the most important remaining source of lead poisoning: household paint and dust."

So spoke Dr. Herbert L. Needleman, one of the nation's premiere experts on the impact of lead poisoning on children. Dr. Needleman spoke with BushGreenwatch upon learning that the Environmental Protection Agency has quietly removed the requirement that only certified contractors using workers trained in lead-safe practices may do remodeling or renovation in buildings constructed before 1978.

According to internal briefings obtained by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), President Bush's new EPA Administrator, Stephen Johnson, has scrapped that requirement in favor of a voluntary approach.[1] Dr. Needleman described the voluntary approach as "a strategy that has never worked in lead abatement."

An EPA spokesperson said the decision to switch to a voluntary approach was not made by Administrator Johnson, but would not say who did.

Citing EPA's removal of lead from gasoline as "the most important public health achievement of the past 30 years," Dr. Needleman said the one important remaining source is lead in the paint and dust of older housing. EPA estimates that some 1.4 million children under age 7—the prime developmental years--live in households where they are at risk of lead exposure.

Addressing the damage lead poisoning causes to children's brain development, Dr. Needleman, a professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and other physicians and lead investigators said that "as pediatricians who have seen the tragic consequences of lead poisoning close up, we are outraged at the quiet abandonment of a program that could eliminate this avoidable epidemic." [2]

The Centers for Disease Control estimates that 434,000 U.S. children under the age of 5 currently have blood-lead levels linked with serious developmental health consequences. Most of them live in the inner cities.

"The Bush Administration has walked away from the national goal of eliminating childhood lead poisoning by 2010," said PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch. Ruch said PEER is working to organize a coalition to press for implementation of the "long-stalled regulations," and, if neccessary, take the issue to court.

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SOURCES:
[1] PEER press release, Mar. 14, 2005.
[2] Letter to Journalists. (Journalists may contact BushGreenwatch.org for a copy of the letter.)

The following is from an EPA brochure entitled "Protect Your Children from Lead Poisoning." It even says, "Lead poisoning is a serious problem for young children -- the younger the child, the greater the risk." Take special note of the second reason for not removing lead paint yourself.

Don’t remove lead paint yourself
Families have been poisoned by scraping or sanding lead paint because these activities generate large amounts of lead dust. Lead dust from repairs or renovations of older buildings can remain in the building long after the work is completed. Heating paint may release lead into the air.
- Ask your local or state health department if they will test your home for lead paint. Some will test for free. Home test kits cannot detect small amounts of lead under some conditions.
- Hire a person with special training for correcting lead paint problems to remove lead paint from your home, someone who knows how to do this work safely and has the proper equipment to clean up thoroughly. Don’t try to remove lead paint yourself.
- All occupants, especially children and pregnant women, should leave the building until all work is finished and a thorough cleanup is done.

I even found the following information on the risks of lead listed on the EPA’s own website:

FACT: Lead exposure can harm young children and babies even before they are born.
FACT: Even children who seem healthy can have high levels of lead in their bodies.
FACT: You can get lead in your body by breathing or swallowing lead dust, or by eating soil or paint chips containing lead.
FACT: You have many options for reducing lead hazards. In most cases, lead-based paint that is in good condition is not a hazard.
FACT: Removing lead-based paint improperly can increase the danger to your family.

Health Effects of Lead

* Childhood lead poisoning remains a major environmental health problem in the U.S. *

* Even children who appear healthy can have dangerous levels of lead in their bodies. *

People can get lead in their body if they:
- Put their hands or other objects covered with lead dust in their mouths.
- Eat paint chips or soil that contains lead.
- Breathe in lead dust (especially during renovations that disturb painted surfaces).
Lead is even more dangerous to children than adults because:
- Babies and young children often put their hands and other objects in their mouths. These objects can have lead dust on them.
- Children's growing bodies absorb more lead.
- Children's brains and nervous systems are more sensitive to the damaging effects of lead.
If not detected early, children with high levels of lead in their bodies can suffer from:
- Damage to the brain and nervous system
- Behavior and learning problems (such as hyperactivity)
- Slowed growth
- Hearing problems
- Headaches
Lead is also harmful to adults. Adults can suffer from:
- Difficulties during pregnancy
- Other reproductive problems (in both men and women)
- High blood pressure
- Digestive problems
- Nerve disorders
- Memory and concentration problems
- Muscle and joint pain

By enforcing regulations on lead and its removal from buildings, we avoid the long-term health costs associated with children who would otherwise suffer from lead poisoning.

The Centers for Disease Control even considers lead poisoning one of the most preventable environmental diseases of young children. Approximately, one million children have elevated blood levels. Additionally, the CDC states the "risk for lead exposure in children is determined primarily by environmental exposure in the child's home. The most common source for lead exposure for children is lead-based paint that has deteriorated into paint chips and lead dust." Furthermore, "lead-based paint is more likely to be present in older houses. In the United States, approximately 83% of privately owned housing units and 86% of public housing units built before 1980 contain some lead-based paint."

It is obvious from the EPA's decision and the information that it provides on its own website about the health risks associated with lead that the EPA is just being extraordinarily hyprocritical and blatantly ignoring sound evidence of the hazards of lead exposure. It's a decision the administration has made for a short-term gain while playing a reckless game of jeopardy with the long-term health of our nation's children.