Lead In Soil

My perspective on lead was initially formed as a result of research on urban garden soils of Baltimore.  The largest and smallest soil lead quantities were not where they were supposed to be according to the dogma of the 1970’s.  The largest quantities were found in the inner-city dominated by unpainted brick row houses and the smallest quantities were found in neighborhoods outside of the inner-city where large painted residential buildings dominated.   After studying lead in soils within large cities and small towns of Minnesota I concluded that lead additives in fuel were a major contributor to accumulated lead dust in the environment.  In 1984 I presented my findings at a U.S. Senate Hearing where I advocated the immediate removal of lead additives to fuel.  During the decades that followed a large body of research vindicated my initial understanding about lead dust and its impact on human welfare and especially the quality of urban environments.  I continue to conduct studies on the following topics: Efficient and cost effective methods for collecting, analyzing, data handling and mapping soil lead at the scale of the city; the association between soil lead and blood lead in urban communities; the quantities of lead additives emitted as aerosols into cities; the rise and fall of lead additives in fuel and the link with the latent increase and decrease of crime at the scale of cities; the connection between soil lead, blood lead and school performance; methods for measuring lead loading on soils compared with lead loading on interior floors; efficient and cost effective methods for remediation of public playgrounds; and, need, feasibility, and costs for soil intervention at play sites of childcare centers.  The overall purpose is to develop evidence-based methods for measuring and remediating places that pose high exposure risks in order to promote and advance primary lead prevention.