In all this debate about lead abatement, how horrible it is for children, and so forth, I haven't seen any evidence presented that the lead paint in Minneapolis homes, especially rental properties, is actually the major cause of lead found in children.
WM: The three main sources of lead in children are lead paint inside the house, lead exhaust from even new cars which, though designed to take less lead to keep from knocking, still have some lead requirements. (Lead free gas ain't completely lead free.) Paint on the exterior of houses that washes down during rain and snow is the third source. The cost of stripping the first six inches of soil off all the yards in most of Mpls. is beyond any affordability and creates the question of where do you put the tainted soil. Hence the ordinance about ground cover. Lead coming off buildings can be dealt with by planting barberry bushes which discourage kids from climbing around in the bushes (by product is that it discourages burglars). Ground cover in yards prevents that source of lead from being a problem.
How many of those 33% of the kids in Minneapolis for lead actually had potentially dangerous lead levels? I know one family whose two daughters had such elevated levels. They live in a turn of last century Victorian house. As with the vast majority of homes in Minneapolis (since most homes were built here prior to 1970), they have lead paint.
WM: I don't keep those kind of statistics. Once the numbers reached my idea of way too many, I started looking at solutions.
As much as I hate to find myself agreeing with Craig Miller, I find myself highly skeptical of the idea of adding a fee to rental property owners under the auspices of fixing the lead problem in Minneapolis.
WM: I don't feel guilty at all, though I am very willing to be taxed another $3/yr. if that's what it takes to produce lead safe dwellings.
If we're really worried about lead, let's find out how big the problem really is, and where it's really coming from.
WM: Actually, those of us who have worked on this issue for years or in years passed do know where the lead comes from.
For example: the garbage burner. It not only produces lead particulate matter, but cadmium and other heavy metals. That was my principal reason for opposing Mary Jo's homeless shelter right near the burner. The second was that the stack bloom covered Near Northside.
The decision was made long ago to educate parents. Pamphlets have been available at clinics and hospitals for several years now. As a result, I've heard from families that they have taken their kids in for lead testing and were relieved to find their kids' lead counts around 4 to 6 parts per decaliter. Even farm kids will have that lead level. Those whose lead levels were slightly higher were given information about foods to eat to help clean the lead out of the body and precautions they could take to keep the lead from getting into the bodies of children in particular. Those who have dangerously high lead levels get medical treatment. Materials for kids which give them ways to be lead safe have also been printed and distributed.
By the way, in my previous post I forgot to credit Rene Parker and Ms. Appleby who got me access to lead poisoned families to do the research.
WizardMarks, Central
Chris Johnson Fulton
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