Lead Safe Play Areas for New Orleans
- by: nola_UNLEADED
- recipient: New Orleans City Council
Lead in the city's soils represent the primary exposure route by which children ingest lead. These contaminated soils are one of the major impediements to controlling rampant lead poisoning in the city. Providing lead safe play areas for children is an important, effective and feasible way to address this crisis. Furthermore, a proven method to achieve this exists.
Clean soil from the Bonnet Carre Spillway is readily available as a cover for children play areas in New Orleans. New Orleans researchers applied a layer of this soil at a handful of childcares centers throughout the city. Soil lead was reduced in a few hours at a cost of about $100 per child (which over 10 years would be $10 per child at the same childcare center).
The clean soil project advances a primary prevention approach for improving the environment for children at childcare centers. The same techniques can be applied to any area where children play.
Please join us in asking the New Orleans City Council to support an extension of this project on a city wide scale.
Dear Sir or Madam,
Lead Poisoning in New Orleans is arguably the worst, and certainly most preventable environmental hazard facing New Orleans today. As of 2009, elevated blood lead levels among children in New Orleans were twice the national average.
Lead impacts the cognitive and physical development of children by taking the place of essential minerals in the early stages of life. The association between lead exposure in children and lowered IQ levels, stunted growth, behavioral problems, and learning difficulties is well documented.
A New Orleans based study by Dr. Howard Mielke found blood lead levels to be a stronger indicator of poor academic performance in New Orleans than both poverty and class size. Similar results were found in a 2004 Mielke study showing scores on the LEAP test decreasing as the soil lead level in the districts of attendance increased.
New Orleans' soils contain levels of lead considered unsafe by EPA standards. These contaminated soils represent one of the major impediments to controlling rampant lead poisoning in New Orleans. Countless families are struggling to find ways to protect their children from this well-known neurotoxin. Providing lead safe play areas for children is an important, effective and feasible step towards addressing this crisis, and a proven method exists.
Clean soil from the Bonnet Carre Spillway is readily available as a cover for children's play areas in New Orleans. To test the feasibility of reducing chidren's exposure to lead polluted soil in New Orleans, Howard Mielke and other researchers conducted a pilot study at several childcare centers in New Orleans. Initially the childcare play areas were contaminated with soil containing a median of 558 ppm lead (range 14-3692 ppm). This is above the U.S. soil lead standards. Intervention involved placing a geotextile cover over the contaminated soil and then adding 6 inches of Bonnet Carre soil on the play area surface. After intervention the play area soils had a median of 4.1 ppm lead (range 2.2-26.1 ppm) providing a large margin of safety for children. Soil lead was reduced in a few hours at a cost of about $100 per child (which over 10 years would be $10 per child at the same childcare center).
The clean soil project advances a primary prevention approach for improving the environment for children at childcare centers. The same techniques can be applied to any area where children play. We the undersigned, respectfully urge you to support further measures like the one above to cover contaminated New Orleans soils.
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