SMALL-TOWN LEAD LEVELS - A CASE-STUDY FROM THE HOMES OF PRESCHOOLERS IN MT-PLEASANT, MICHIGAN

This study evaluates the relationship between household Pb levels and four variables (home age, distance to road, traffic volume adjacent to the home, and the amount of exposed soil) for 42 homes in a small cit y. As a whole, Pb levels for the Mt. Pleasant sample were very low com pared to large cities. Home age appeared to have the greatest impact o n Pb levels as determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The oldest homes (homes >60 years) had the following geometric means: soil = 65 mug g-1, vacuum dust = 620 mug g-1, window sill = 291 mug m-2, i ndoor play area = 22 mug m-2, and home entrance = 291 mug m-2. The cor relation coefficient for increasing home age and soil Pb level was r = 0.63 (p < 0.000). An inverse relationship (r = -0.45, p = 0.003) occu rred between soil Pb levels and distance from the road Household Pb le vels generally increased both with higher traffic volumes and greater amounts of exposed soil although both trends were not statistically si gnificant. Study participants kept their home in a good to excellent s tate of repair and resided on lightly trafficked streets; as such, Pb deposition through the weathering of Pb-based paint and the former com bustion of leaded gasoline was minimized.