Research Environmental Lead after Hurricane Katrina: Implications for Future Populations Felicia A. Rabito,1 Shahed Iqbal,1 Sara Perry,1 Whitney Arroyave,1 and Janet C. Rice 2 1Department of Epidemiology, and 2Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA Background : As a result of Hurricane Katrina, > 100,000 homes were destroyed or damaged and a significant amount of sediment was deposited throughout the city of New Orleans, Louisiana. Researchers have identified the potential for increased lead hazards from environmental lead con- tamination of soils. o Bjectivs : We assessed the distribution of residential soil and dust lead 2 years poststorm and compared soil lead before and after the storm. Methods : We conducted a cross-sectional study in New Orleans in which households were selected by stratified random sampling. A standard residential questionnaire was administered, and lead test- ing was performed for both the interior and exterior of homes. Logistic regression was used to iden- tify significant predictors of interior and exterior lead levels in excess of allowable levels. r esult : One hundred nine households were enrolled; 61% had at least one lead measurement above federal standards. Of homes with bare soil, 47% had elevated lead and 27% had levels exceed- ing 1,200 ppm. Housing age was associated with soil lead, and housing age and soil lead were asso- ciated with interior lead. Race, income, and ownership status were not significantly associated with either interior or exterior lead levels. The median soil lead level of 560 ppm was significantly higher than the median level of samples collected before Hurricane Katrina. c onclusion : The high prevalence (61%) of lead above recommended levels in soil and dust samples in and around residences raises concern about potential health risks to the New Orleans population, most notably children. Steps should be taken to mitigate the risk of exposure to lead- contaminated soil and dust. Further research is needed to quantify the possible contribution of reconstruction activities to environmental lead levels. k ey w ords : children’s health, environmental exposures, housing, lead exposure, soil pollutants. Environ Health Perspect 120:180–184 (2012). http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1103774 [Online 3 November 2011] When Hurricane Katrina flooded the city of New Orleans, Louisiana, and adjacent areas in August 2005, one of many environmental health concerns was the possibility of wide­ spread contamination of soils and sediments. To assess the hurricane’s impact, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality initiated an investigation into the floodwater sediment contamination in resi­ dential neighborhoods both before the flood­ waters receded and before cleanup. Sampling results indicated that residential soils con­ tained lead; however, the U.S. EPA found that the hurricane did not significantly affect the distribution of lead because the post­ hurricane geography of lead distribution resembled prehurricane distributions (U.S. EPA 2005). Another lead assessment, con­ ducted in 2006, reported a 46% decrease in median soil lead from pre­Katrina levels (Zahran et al. 2010). Both of these studies were conducted in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and preceded the exten­ sive renovation effort that would be required to rebuild the city. A 2007 report by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) highlighted the potential risk of lead exposure to families returning to New Orleans in light of the extensive amount of renovation and 180 demolition that would be required to rebuild the city. According to the 2000 U.S. Census, > 100,000 homes in New Orleans were built before 1950, an estimated 83% of which have lead hazards (ATSDR 2007). The report con­ cluded by stating that despite surveys indicat­ ing no increase in environmental lead levels, the actual extent of lead hazards would be determined only after soil data collected sub­ sequent to reconstruction activities became available (ATSDR 2007). A recently pub­ lished survey of schoolyard soil also suggested the need for more extensive assessment of residential lead hazards (Presley et al. 2010). To our knowledge, there have been no environmental surveys of residential haz­ ards in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The primary goal of the New Orleans Home Health Hazard project was to assess the burden of numerous envi­ ronmental health hazards (e.g., allergen levels, mold, lead) in the homes of returning resi­ dents. The present analysis was conducted to characterize the distribution of residential soil and dust lead levels in a representative sample of New Orleans homes after the reconstruc­ tion effort in the city had begun, to compare the soil lead distribution pre­ and post storm, and to address the potential lead hazard to residents of New Orleans after the devasta­ tion of Hurricane Katrina. Materials and Methods Sampling and recruitment. We conducted a cross­sectional survey of lead hazards in a representative sample of New Orleans homes. The target population was all occupied homes in New Orleans. Repopulation of the city was a dynamic process; as a result, determining population estimates was a challenge. The Louisiana Public Health Institute worked with the U.S. Census Bureau and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to produce accurate and reliable estimates of the size and characteristics of the New Orleans population during the post­ Hurricane Katrina recovery period (Louisiana Public Health Institute 2006). Their population estimates, which were stratified by planning district, were used for the present study. Planning districts are geographical units of the city designated by federal and state requirements for economic development planning. New Orleans is composed of 13 planning districts (Figure 1). We excluded 3 planning districts from the study because they are unique areas and do not represent the New Orleans urban core (Venetian Isles, Village de L’est, and English Turn). One other planning district, the Lower Ninth Ward, was also excluded because of the slow pace of reconstruction in that district. Mass population shifts occurred during the period after the hurricane, making exist­ ing household sampling frames (e.g., residen­ tial rosters) inappropriate for use. Therefore, to select sample households, we used the Sewerage and Water Board address list, a ros­ ter of all residential addresses billed for water service (the best available list of reoccupied homes after the storm), as the sampling frame. Sewerage and Water Board addresses were geocoded to a census tract and assigned to the appropriate planning district. Address correspondence to F.A. Rabito, Department of Epidemiology, Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, 1440 Canal St., SL18, Room 2016, New Orleans, LA 70112 USA. Telephone: (504) 988­ 3479. Fax: (504) 988­ 1564. E­mail: rabito@tulane.edu This work was funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control grant LALHH0121­03. We thank H. Mielke for use of his soil lead database. The authors declare they have no actual or potential competing financial interests. Received 6 April 2011; accepted 3 November 2011. ovlume 120 | number 2 | February 2012 • Environmental Health Perspectives