Feds Criticized for Lead Strategy

The U-S-E-P-A is working on a new set of standards for lead content indust and soil in and around homes. Those standards will be mandatory forall federally-owned or assisted housing and voluntary for other homes.Lead is of concern for the E-P-A because studies have found that one outof every 20 children in the U-S suffer from elevated blood-lead levels.But in a September issue of the journal "Science", one physician iscriticizing the way federal authorities are developing those newstandards. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Steve Hirschberg hasmore:

Inner-City Children and Lead Exposure

Many inner-city homes built before World War Two still contain lead paint-making them harmful environments for children. An estimated twenty-percent of inner-city children have dangerous levels of lead that could be hampering their central nervous systems. Researchers are trying to find out what long-term effects lead exposure in the home has on children. And they’re testing a drug that might reverse those effects. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Steve Hirschberg has more:

A Mother’s Crusade

Lead poisoning has been called the number one environmental health hazard for children. While low-income families are most affected, lead poisoning can happen to anyone. And the damage it does is permanent. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Wendy Nelson recently met a family that’s been forever changed because of lead:

Federal Policy Spurs Clean-Up

A new batch of federal funding intended to get the lead out of homes is expected to bring big benefits to several Midwestern cities. The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced a plan late last year to dole out fifty-million dollars nationally to better educate the public on lead’s dangers and provide cleanup funds for individual homes. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Julie Edelson Halpert has more:

Getting the Lead Out of Home Renovations

Buying a house is part of the American dream. But after the papers are signed, most homeowners discover that the maintenance and remodeling that go with owning a home are expensive. So to save money, many go the do-it-yourself route. But sometimes even the simplest projects are more complicated than they first appear. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Wendy Nelson reports: