GRAPH: State Data Shows Higher Incidence of Lead Poisoning in Lititz Kids than Flint Kids
Update: This article was originally published in May 2016 and updated Jan. 4, 2022 with series links.
(LITITZ, Pa. – LititzDailyNews.com) Children in Lititz, Pennsylvania tested positive for lead poisoning at twice the rate of children in Flint, Michigan in 2015, even after the city disastrously changed its water supply allowing toxic lead to leach from aging pipes.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health provided the data last week in response to a request from LititzDailyNews.com editor Lynn Rebuck for her investigative series on lead in Lititz drinking water. STORY CONTINUES BELOW our links to our series on Lead in Lititz Water; see GRAPH below. Note:
The data reveals that in 2015, almost 7% of Lititz children tested under the age of 6 living in the 17543 ZIP code had confirmed blood lead levels over the 5 micrograms per deciliter threshold established by the Centers for Disease Control, which states that there is no safe level of lead in children.
State: Warwick Township Violated Lead in Drinking Water Laws
Across the state of Pennsylvania, the rate of confirmed elevated blood lead levels for children tested under age 7 was 1.06%, according to Dr. Loren Robinson, who oversees the Pennsylvania childhood lead prevention program. STORY CONTINUES BELOW
RELATED STORY: STATE SAYS LITITZ BOROUGH VIOLATED DRINKING WATER LAWS
By comparison, the percentage of children age 5 and under in Flint ZIP codes with high water lead levels rose from 2.5% before the 2015 switch to a more corrosive water source to 6.3% after the switch, according to an analysis of hospital data by Mona Hanna-Attisha, a researcher at Flint’s Hurley Medical Center. Corrosive water is known to leach lead from aging pipes.
RELATED STORY: STATE: WARWICK TOWNSHIP VIOLATED LEAD IN DRINKING WATER LAWS
Warwick Township Used Employees’ Homes to Test for Lead in Water
In response to this LititzDailyNews.com investigative series, the Pennsylvania DEP cited Warwick Township and Lititz Borough for violating laws meant to protect Lititz citizens from lead in drinking water. The state investigation was prompted by an in-depth investigative series of stories on lead in Lititz water by LititzDailyNews.com that exposed illegal and unethical testing practices, erroneous reports sent to residents, and high lead levels in certain homes.
As They Violated Water Lead Laws, Borough and Township Received EPA Water Award
RELATED STORY: BOROUGH RELEASES ADDRESSES OF 300 LEAD GOOSENECK WATER CONNECTORS
Lead is known to cause neurological damage to infants, children, and developing fetuses and is associated with behavioral disorders, ADHD, learning disorders, and other conditions. Children with low levels may not show any symptoms, but lead can build up in the body, even to the point of causing changes to bones visible on x-ray. Lead can also be harmful for pregnant woman and adults of any age, though symptoms vary from those seen in children.
Lead in water isn’t the only danger to children; lead paint in older homes in Lititz also poses danger to kids. Even simply opening a window in a Borough house where lead paint has ever been used can cause toxic lead particles to float to the floor, where children are most likely to encounter them. Elevated lead levels can even be found in baby teeth that fell out years earlier.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW GRAPH. READ MORE BELOW.
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection issued notices of violation to all three Lititz water systems— the system in Lititz Borough and both systems operated by Warwick Township–as a result of the LititzDailyNews.com investigative series on lead in Lititz water.
The state called out Severn Trent Services, a private company that operates the Borough system, for failing to locate appropriate homes for lead sampling. By law, 50% of the samples drawn from taps in systems that have lead are to be from homes with lead pipes.
Document Shows Borough Manager Signed Off on Faulty Lead Report to Residents
Data from the state of Michigan shows that among Flint children under the age of 16, 2.37% had elevated blood-lead levels in the year prior to the source water switch while 3.21% had confirmed elevated levels afterwards.
The Lititz-area data shows that the percentage of kids in 17543 under 6 with elevated lead-blood levels increased from 6.1% in 2013 to 7.14% in 2015. The state did not provide the number of local confirmed elevated levels in children during 2014, citing privacy laws if fewer than 10 cases are identified. At least 54 children in the Lititz area had confirmed elevated blood levels from 2011-2015, and all but one was under age 6.
Pediatricians routinely test children at ages 1 and 2 who are on medical assistance in line with CDC recommendations, since those children are considered at risk and are more likely to live in older housing, according to Dr. Loren Robinson, who oversees the Pennsylvania childhood lead prevention program. Doctors may test any child they believe to be at risk for lead poisoning.
Across the state of Pennsylvania, the rate of confirmed elevated blood lead levels for children tested under age 7 was 1.06%, according to Robinson.
The 17543 ZIP code includes Brickerville, Fairland, Halfville, Kissel Hill, Lexington, Lime Rock, Lititz, Millway, Poplar Grove, Rothsville, and Speedwell.
The reported level of lead in drinking water for more than 10% of Rothsville homes in 2013 was 11 parts per billion (ppb), the same level reported to residents by Flint authorities for the first six months of 2015.
Infants whose formula is mixed with tap water are more likely to be harmed by elevated lead levels in drinking water, according to experts.
One study cited by Hanna-Attisha and authored by Viriginia Tech civil engineering professor Marc Edwards found that for 25% of infants drinking formula made from tap water at 10 ppb, blood lead would rise above the CDC level of concern of 5 micrograms per deciliter. Edwards is recognized for his work that uncovered high lead levels in Flint water.
Parents who are concerned about their child’s blood lead level may request a blood test be ordered by their child’s pediatrician.
Lead testing in childhood is covered as a preventive service for children under the Affordable Care Act and Medical Assistance, according to the state’s website.
“There is no mandate in Pennsylvania to test children for lead, and that’s something that we want to change,” said Robinson.
While lead in water poses a health risk, it is not the only source of lead danger to families.
“We continue to be concerned that buildings in the Commonwealth that were built before 1978 continue to have potentially high levels of lead,” said Robinson.
Pediatricians can refer families to the Healthy Homes Program for a free safety evaluation of their residence that includes testing for lead paint and other health hazards.
For more information, visit the Pennsylvania Department of Health Lead Poisoning page or call the Department of Health toll-free Lead Information Line at 1-800-440-LEAD. To learn more about identifying lead risks in your home, or in other places your child plays, read the EPA Fact Sheet on Identifying lead hazards.
Editor Lynn Rebuck outside the White House. Photo: Lynn Rebuck
If you live in the 17543 ZIP and have a child who has tested with an elevated blood lead level, message @LititzDaily on Facebook or email [email protected]. Lynn Rebuck is the award-winning editor and publisher of LititzDailyNews.com, the only independent news site in Lititz. LititzDailyNews.com relies on support from readers like you to publish stories of importance to the community. Show your support of LititzDailyNews.com with a donation today via the secure PayPal button next to or below this story.
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