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posted by Fnord666 on Thursday March 23 2017, @09:52PM   Printer-friendly
from the there-are-acceptable-levels-of-lead-poisoning? dept.

Some neighborhoods in California are experiencing levels of lead that exceed those measured in Flint, Michigan:

Dozens of California communities have experienced recent rates of childhood lead poisoning that surpass those of Flint, Michigan, with one Fresno locale showing rates nearly three times higher, blood testing data obtained by Reuters shows.

The data shows how lead poisoning affects even a state known for its environmental advocacy, with high rates of childhood exposure found in a swath of the Bay Area and downtown Los Angeles. And the figures show that, despite national strides in eliminating lead-based products, hazards remain in areas far from the Rust Belt or East Coast regions filled with old housing and legacy industry.

In one central Fresno zip code, 13.6 percent of blood tests on children under six years old came back high for lead. That compares to 5 percent across the city of Flint during its recent water contamination crisis. In all, Reuters found at least 29 Golden State neighborhoods where children had elevated lead tests at rates at least as high as in Flint.

Interactive map of U.S. lead hotspots.


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  • (Score: 2) by Thexalon on Friday March 24 2017, @12:25PM

    by Thexalon (636) on Friday March 24 2017, @12:25PM (#483608)

    Of course Flint is not the only place where lead poisoning is a major problem. The reason Flint got famous is that the government knowingly made specific decisions that they knew would increase the level of lead in the drinking supply, without telling anybody, and then tried to cover up that fact.

    You can find industrial sites all over the country with higher levels of lead and other toxins, and kids who've been poisoned by it. Indeed, there's substantial evidence that it's one of the major reasons why inner-city kids have a harder time than suburban kids: their homes were built before the anti-lead laws were in place, and landlords didn't bother with the expensive and time-consuming process of fixing the lead paint and plumbing.

    I'm all in favor of journalism trying to investigate lead levels and publicize them. I'm also hoping against all hope that "these levels are worse than Flint" isn't taken to mean "... so those people in Flint should just shut up, it's not a big deal".

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