Soil lead contamination at child day care centers in the greater Cincinnati area

Abstract

Lead concentrations were determined for soil samples collected at 37 child day care centers located within the greater Cincinnati area. Soil samples were collected within 1.5 m of the exterior walls and throughout the remainder of the outdoor playgrounds of each of the child day care facilities. The soil lead concentrations were utilized as indicators of lead contamination from vehicle emissions and lead based paints. Mean lead concentrations were determined through Inductively Coupled PlasmaMass Spectrometry. Soil lead concentrations were significantly higher within 1.5 m of the exterior walls than the rest of the outdoor play areas of the child day care centers (P < .05). There was a highly significant association between higher soil lead concentrations for child day care centers built prior to 1980 (P < .01). It was also found that a highly significant association exists between higher soil lead concentrations for child day care centers located within 2.5 km of the nearest interstate highway (P < .01). The findings of this research point to a clear need for concern about lead contamination at child day care centers and other facilities that large numbers of children frequent on a daily basis.

Pesticide, allergen, PCB, and lead measurements in childcare centers located on tribal lands in the Pacific Northwest, United States

“…Other research groups have reported on selected chemical and biological agents such as pesticides and other persistent organic pollutants [8,[10][11][12][13][14], PCBs [15,16], brominated flame retardants [17], perfluorinated compounds [17][18][19], metals [14,17,[20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30], and allergens (including dust mite, cockroach, cat, dog, endotoxins, horse, fungi) in both the indoor and outdoor childcare center environment in limited studies in the United States and globally. Collectively, this body of research shows that children may be exposed to numerous chemical and biological agents while in center-based care, yet we don't understand how exposure to myriad chemical and biological agents may affect children's health and well-being.…”

Urban soil contamination with lead and cadmium in the playgrounds located near busy streets in Cracow (South Poland)

“…Volume of traffic pollution depends on the distance from the road, topography and traffic intensity (Niesiobędzka & Krajewska 2007, Button 2008. Dust borne heavy metals accumulate in the topsoil due to the atmospheric deposition by sedimentation, impaction and interception (Li et al 2001, Sezgin et al 2006, Lu et al 2009).…”