Latest news with #lead exposure
CBS News
5 days ago
- Health
- CBS News
Minnesota pollution agency could have alerted people whose health was at risk from lead exposure sooner
WCCO Investigates discovered the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) could have alerted people whose health was at risk from lead exposure sooner. In late May, the MPCA issued a notice of violation to Gopher Resource in Eagan, Minnesota, for exceeding lead air quality standards from January through March. People living nearby weren't told about the pollution problem until July. The state pollution control agency has the authority to notify people when there's a health risk. The Environmental Protection Agency told WCCO the agency doesn't have to wait three months to do so per federal law — as the MPCA told concerned residents. People who live in the area of impact voiced their concerns at a community meeting last month, and expressed frustration about how the meeting was handled. Battery recycling business, Gopher Resource, released excessive lead emissions for three months earlier this year. The company says it became aware of the elevated readings in early 2025 and alerted the MPCA. The state health department says there's no safe level of lead exposure. "The challenging part here is that we have federal rules which require that we have three months of data to confirm that those lead levels exceeded those federal standards," MPCA Division Director Courtney Ahlers-Nelson said during a virtual meeting. "As a result, after three months of data, we must physically collect the monitoring, the materials from our monitors and then we must review that very closely." The MPCA pointed to the federal Clean Air Act, saying that's why it took so long to notify people. But it was too late for anyone to take precautions. The Environmental Protection Agency told WCCO, "The Clean Air Act does not prohibit sharing data before the three-month rolling calculation is done." The EPA did say there is a time lag to process a day's sample. Here's some of what the MPCA told WCCO in response: "It is a delicate balance of sharing information and causing undue public concern and unjustified damage to a company's reputation, and we continually review our processes within MPCA and take public feedback into account. Spikes in monitoring can sometimes be attributed to monitoring equipment malfunctions or environmental anomalies, and we need to be certain of what the data shows." It added that the information they shared was part of an active investigation and, under state law, was considered non-public. Here's the bottom line: The community has said they want the MPCA to alert them as soon as possible when there's a pollution problem suspected that can impact health — and the agency can. Already, a state lawmaker has called for the legislative auditor to look into how this was handled. The legislative auditor told WCCO the office has not yet made a decision about a special review. MPCA reports there is also an open investigation into hazardous waste management and stormwater management at Gopher Resource.
CBC
17-07-2025
- Health
- CBC
Researcher says N.W.T. officials taking right steps after school lead investigation
A health professor who studies lead exposure in Canada says he's confident that the N.W.T. government is responding appropriately to a recent investigation into lead in the drinking water at two Yellowknife schools — and that the priority must be to reduce any ongoing risks. Earlier this week the N.W.T.'s education minister said her department is committed to implementing the recommendations made by an independent investigator who looked into how the territory responded to the discovery of lead in drinking water at École William McDonald Middle School and Range Lake North School. Bruce Lanphear is a professor in the department of health sciences at Simon Fraser University whose research focuses on toxic chemicals and children's health. He said Yellowknife school officials reached out to him to talk about the investigation and he spoke with them on Tuesday. "What I came away with from my meeting this morning was that they are taking all the necessary steps," Lanphear said on Tuesday afternoon. "They've got a longer-term strategy to make sure that all the sources are mitigated, and that's really what we want them to do now." In a statement this week, Education Minister Caitlin Cleveland said the investigation confirmed "warning signs were missed, key test results weren't escalated quickly enough and communication between departments and with the public was inconsistent." Lanphear acknowledged the public concern around the issue. "Parents are understandably concerned, understandably angry… This should have been dealt with 20 years ago," he said. Based on the lead levels detected at the Yellowknife schools, Lanphear agrees with the N.W.T.'s chief public health officer that blood lead levels in students and staff would likely not be above the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's level of concern, which is 3.5 micrograms per decilitre (µg/dL) for children. However, Lanphear said even low-level exposure to lead can have effects. Health Canada also says that health effects have been associated with blood lead levels as low as 1 to 2 μg/dL, though it acknowledges "uncertainty associated with effects observed at these levels." Lanphear says another group at higher risk from lead exposure is pregnant women. His research has found that blood lead levels of 1 μg/dL were associated with a 50 per cent increase in preterm birth. He says blood testing can be done but there's nothing to do in response to elevated blood lead levels other than reducing further exposure. "The main thing is to stop it from continuing to happen," he said. Past and future testing In 2019, Health Canada updated its guideline for lead in drinking water — cutting the acceptable concentration of the metal in half, from 10 µg/L to 5 µg/L. The N.W.T. government was looking into doing its own testing for lead in school water around the same time, but plans for that testing fell through. Agata Gutkowska, manager of public affairs and communications for the territory's environment department, says it came down to costs. "At the time, the water testing program included elements beyond lead. This broader scope increased the overall estimated cost — exceeding $100,000 — which contributed to the decision not to proceed at that time," said Gutkowska. The N.W.T. government has committed to annual testing of school water going forward, but the cost of that is still being determined. Gutkowska said the cost will depend on things like the number of water outlets and where a school is located. She said the goal is to develop a program that is sustainable for the long term. The program scope will be determined by a steering committee made up of senior officials from the territory's health, environment, and infrastructure departments, as well as YK Education District No. 1. Gutkowski said some operational staff who were involved in the initial testing initiative will continue to support future work. "As the program is formalized under the oversight of the steering committee, roles and responsibilities are being clarified to support a more structured and sustainable approach." Future testing will take place at schools across the territory including St. Patrick High School in Yellowknife, which was flagged for retesting since its results were below, but close to, the maximum acceptable level for lead in drinking water.
The Guardian
15-07-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Protect children, not just animals, from lead exposure
I am glad that the government has moved to protect birds and wildlife from toxic lead exposure by banning lead ammunition (Report, 10 July). It would be great if its next move could be to try to protect the estimated 200,000 children in the UK who have asymptomatic and undiagnosed lead exposure that will cause them lifelong health and cognitive impairments. At present we have a passive surveillance system that misses 99% of CrawfurdSenior research fellow, Center for Global Development When working for the same civil service department as Ian Arnott (Letters, 14 July), my husband was told by a senior manager that if he wanted to 'get on' in his career he should 'lose the beard'. He didn't – and he didn' HagertyDeal, Kent I chatted to a group of 16-year-old bearded students after an exam, pointing out the social changes they represented. When training to teach in the 1960s, we students had to shave our beards off when going into schools on teaching practice. Were we just unkempt or dangerous, lefty trendies?Brian ThomasMarden, Kent Re Barney Ronay's article (11 July), Jasprit Bumrah is cricket's Toshiro Mifune. A mesmerising samurai for our time, he has the gentle mien, the hunched shoulder, the warrior's intensity and natural authority. And we love AdamsLondon What about Two Soups (Everybody's favourite manic pixie dream aunt: Celia Imrie's 20 best films – ranked!, 10 July)?Lucy HamiltonWeymouth, Dorset Have an opinion on anything you've read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
