Document ID: EPA-HQ-OLEM-2021-0762-0041
Agency: epa
Document Type: Supporting & Related Material
Title: 
Posted Date: 2022-03-17T04:00Z

Virtual Public Listening Sessions on EPA's draft Lead Strategy to Reduce Lead Exposures and Disparities in U.S. Communities
Docket ID: EPA-HQ-OLEM-2021-0762
R8 Public Listening Session 
Date: March 1, 2022
Start Time: 6:00 PM MT (8 PM ET)
Record of Public Comments
(To view a recording of the listening session, please visit: https://youtu.be/57g4Ovhh3ao)

29:28
[Seth Cornell, Private Citizen] Okay. Well, I appreciate the EPA listening session.
29:32
My name is Seth Cornell, I am a citizen in [indiscernible] America. We are a small mining community about 35,000 people, located in southwest Montana. I was thrilled to look at the participant list and see that there are many folks from Butte on the call today.
29:51
So I am encouraged. I think it shows how important lead exposure is in the community.
29:57
In just reviewing the draft lead strategy, you know, the goal number 2 identify communities that are exposed to lead. I just want to, I'm sure Butte is on the EPA's region 8 list. For those that don't know we are a mining community.
30:13
We're surrounded by I think 13 Superfund operable units. One of those operable units called the Butte priority soil operable unit encompasses a large urban portion of the population.
30:27
And within that operable unit, lead is one of the contaminants of concern. So lead is a real issue in the community,
30:36
now, so goal 2, I think, just to make sure that Butte is on your radar.
30:42
I saw Goal number one of the strategy reduce exposure to lead sources and Objective C reduce exposure to lead in soils, Ah - lead and lead in soil in Butte is, as I mentioned a compound of concern. A specific recommendation is that our current action level
31:00
for mediation in residential soils is 1200 milligrams per kilogram of soil so 1000 2200 milligrams of lead per kilogram of soil, as far as I'm aware, that is the highest action level that I've seen with regard to residential threshold to remediate. That
31:20
action levels based on a model that was developed over 30 years ago, and the model, to quote from the record of decision,
31:32
It was that action level was based on data to maintain blood levels of 10 micrograms per deciliter, or less, for at least 95% of children between the ages of zero and six.
31:44
So as I'm sure everybody on the call is aware that up, or the CDC has updated their blood reference level twice since then. So it's no longer 10. It was dropped down to five I think about seven or eight years ago and then they recently revised it, and
31:59
the reference level to 3.5 micrograms per deciliter so a specific recommendation would be to please look at the model that we are currently using in Butte, Montana, to develop the action levels for soil remediation.
32:13
I look forward to reviewing the soil lead policy for contaminated sites as well as the gentleman that measured mentioned that the specific measures and metrics.
32:22
Thank you for your time and I'll yield it back.
32:59
[Claudia Fruin, Utah Lead Coalition] Can you hear me? We can I can hear you. Thank you. Oh, okay. Hey, um, yeah, I am, I'm in Salt Lake City, Utah, and I'm the chair of the Utah Lead Coalition which was founded in 2016, to try and improve blood lead testing in our state and education and
33:17
reporting. And so we currently are working with a couple of CDC grants and have made great strides with increasing testing 12 fold in the last five years or so.
33:32
And we're finding about currently about it was 1% of kids with elevated blood levels at the five micrograms per deciliter but it's even higher with the 3.5 and I don't have that data, because it hasn't come out, but I just wanted to bring to the attention
33:48
a couple of, I think, underserved, in my mind, communities where I feel like we really need to focus and get data. One of which is the pregnant women and women of childbearing age.
34:03
So I'm my background is as a pediatrician. And so when I started this I found out that the ACOG American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology doesn't recommend routine testing.
34:15
So it's not really done here at all in Utah, and they're not even they're rarely even given a questionnaire to see if they're at risk for exposure.
34:26
So it's sort of thought that maybe up to 2% of women in this category may actually have elevated levels, then this means that they are you know passing this on to their children and causing potential damage before the babies even born so a recommendation
34:41
is that we really push in this medical community and educate women that it's important that they know about risks of lead and that they actually get tested.
34:53
And then the second community that we've kind of recently got interested in which is big in Utah is in the hunting community. So, hunters just aren't really aware of the hazards of using lead bullets, and they feel a bit threatened by us trying to educate
35:13
them because they feel that it becomes an anti-hunting message.
35:17
So the other thing is healthcare providers just haven't really talked much to this community about the risks, and there's also a risk with donated meat food banks and stuff so again, a recommendation is that there's more education in the hunting community
35:32
and recommendation of, like, of non-lead ammo, and that that we do testing so we do recommend testing and rifle ranges or that people that are reloading guns and hunting regularly actually get tested for exposure and again, this is trying to collect data,
35:50
to see what we can see what the problem is. So, that's all I really have to say thank you.
36:25
[Elizabeth Heidl, Save Our Skies Alliance] Hello, my name is Elizabeth Heidl and I live in Broomfield, Colorado. I appreciate the opportunity to comment today.
36:33
The US has spent billions of dollars during the past 50 years working to eliminate lead-based paint and replacing lead pipes in buildings. Leaded gas was eliminated for use and vehicles in 1996 so 26 years ago.
36:50
Many of you participating in this meeting tonight will be surprised to learn that the estimated 130,000 piston engine aircraft in operation today, primarily at General Aviation airports use leaded av gas. We have two of the busiest general
37:08
aviation airports in the country, and the Denver area Centennial and Rocky Mountain Metropolitan airport just outside of Denver both of them.
37:18
According to data from 2017, piston engine aircraft are responsible for 70% of all lead in the atmosphere.
37:27
It took us less time to put a man on the moon than it's taken to find a suitable unleaded alternative for piston engine aircraft. A complete ban on unleaded fuel is decades overdue.
37:41
The lobbying dollars of the 400 aviation associations in the US, as well as the protection that the FAA provides to the aviation industry are the reasons that it took 25 years after leaded gas was banned for automobiles, to develop a suitable unleaded
37:58
option for piston aircraft. We have that option now.
38:03
Unfortunately, it'll take decades more for widespread use unless it's made mandatory. why?
38:09
Well, my understanding is that the EPA doesn't have authority over the FAA, so no matter what strategy the EPA decides to implement to eliminate lead from piston engine aircraft,
38:22
the FAA can continue to do as it has for the past 26 years, which is nothing.
38:29
How does the EPA intend to influence the FAA to make the use of unleaded av gas a requirement in piston engine aircraft?
38:38
If this isn't included as a key part of the EPA strategy to reduce lead, it may take another 26 years to eliminate this source of lead in the atmosphere.
38:48
I urge you to address the source of lead that's generated by piston engine aircraft in your strategy. Thank you.
39:15
[David Hutchins, Private Citizen] Thanks, can you hear me OK? we can. Okay. I'm David Hutchins. I'm a resident of the Butte priority soils operable unit of the Butte Superfund that Dr. Cornell mentioned and I'm going to echo a lot of his thoughts but this operable unit is home to a disproportionately
39:32
low income population that is being exposed to lead. Just one of our contaminants of concern at an elevated level.
39:40
I see that this draft strategy includes many general steps towards addressing environmental justice and lead exposure. I'd like to offer a single specific action that would help achieve the stated goals.
39:52
And that is, update the IUBK model with an appropriate blood lead threshold value. For us here when our residential soil action level was developed in the late 90s, using this model, the blood lead threshold parameter was the CDC blood lead referenced value of
40:09
10 micrograms per deciliter.
40:12
The CDC has since updated that value once in 2012 to five micrograms per deciliter and then again last year to 3.5.
40:21
The EPA hasn't updated the model, or the resulting action levels.
40:26
And this does directly expose many overburdened populations to higher concentrations of lead.
40:34
So for almost 10 years now we've been asking for this update, without any answers from the EPA, so it's overdo. The guidance on Superfund five-year reviews, where they should be addressed is clear. It says they need to ask the question - are exposure assumptions,
40:52
toxicity data, cleanup levels and remedial action objectives used at the time of the remedy selection still valid? And in the case of this value,
41:02
clearly, no. Yet this remedy and many others continue to be based on this outdated value. So please include this specific update in the strategy.
41:15
The single action would help accomplish
41:18
Objective C and would employ all three approaches, so I think it fits in well. Thanks.
41:34
[Ross Jorgensen, Wyoming Association of Rural Water Systems] Ross Jorgensen with the Wyoming association of rural water systems, and my comments are on, that'd be your goal one objective B which is the lead and copper rule revisions
41:56
that are coming into place.
41:58
But specifically, the lead service line inventory and lead service line replacement.
42:09
I have I have no objections to that.
42:13
My comment here is that here in Wyoming
42:19
region 8 EPA is our primacy agency here in Wyoming.
42:24
And so our water operators from the systems, anywhere from 25 taps to
42:33
2500 taps to 25,000 taps are - need to deal directly with Region 8 EPA. With that said, the biggest thing that I see as a circuit writer, visiting these water systems is assistance from our primacy agency for education of the public.
42:59
You know we reach out to stakeholders but like my neighbor Joe next to me, or the widow Gail across the street from me.
43:08
Ah, what information and assistance is being provided through the lead reduction strategy here to help educate the public?
43:21
It's the only way that I see that we're going to be able to fulfill the requirements of the new rules, is to educate our public.
43:33
And so, for the most part, that's the biggest hurdle that I see that our systems, our small systems, are going to be, and are going to have to deal with and and it's, it's going to be a burden of man hours that they have to find.
43:54
So, we need to help them there also.
43:58
So, my anyway.
44:01
My strongest recommendation is,
44:05
how do we reach out and educate the guy next door and not just try to reach the water operator or the mayor and the council, but help them to educate their people?
44:20
Thank you for your time for listening to me.
44:37
[Gary Keller, Citizens Against Gillespie Expansion and Low Flying Aircraft] I'm going to add to Elizabeth Heidl's talk about general aviation leaded fuel.
44:47
Currently there are about 20,000 general aviation airports in the United States. All of these airports cater to planes still using leaded aviation fuel.
44:57
A recent study by Dr Sammy Zahran around at Reid Hill view airport in San Jose, California has proven not only that children who live near these airports have elevated blood lead levels,
45:09
some of them higher than those found in the Flint water crisis, but also that the 2008 EPA national ambient air quality standard for lead of 0.15 micrograms per cubic meter is still way too high.
45:26
The childhood lead poisoning prevention branch of the California Department of Public Health has warned that children should not play or spend time near general aviation airports. Why isn't the EPA warning all parents with children who live near these
45:41
airports? It is estimated that 16 million people, including 3 million children live within a kilometer of these airports. How many attend schools or are at daycare centers near these airports?
45:55
Many of them are are most of these children come from poor economic backgrounds. It doesn't matter if a person breathes in, swallows or absorbs lead particles, the health effects are the same.
46:08
However, the body absorbs higher levels of lead when it is breathed in. Each year general aviation aircraft are responsible for 1 million pounds of lead emissions across United States. On an average, general aviation aircraft make up 70% of all new airborne
46:26
lead emissions in the US. each year. Region number 8 puts out close to 59,000 pounds all by itself. That's 29 tons of lead through the exhaust of general aviation planes
46:41
each year, all for the breathing pleasures of our children.
46:45
The Federal Aviation Administration, the lead federal entity for these issues, is simply not equipped to meaningfully address environmental justice and health equity challenge of emissions. The 2021 National Academy of Sciences study on av gas is woefully
47:03
short of giving real recommendations for fixing the problems.
47:08
The recent proposals by the aviation industry to work eight more years and finding a miracle fuel will mean 8 million more pounds of lead on our children.
47:19
We do not need any more testing. We already have compelling results of elevated blood lead levels in children.
47:27
I was watching in the early 1970s when the Clean Air Act and the EPA help take away lead from automobile fuel. I am still watching 50 years later, and there's still leaded fuel being used. Please put the "P" back into the EPA and put a stop to this continuous
47:45
poisoning of our children. Finish the job your agency started. Thank you.
48:28
[Bri Lehman, Save Our Skies Alliance] Thank you for taking my comments today.
48:30
You know I feel like a lot of what I was going to say has been said by other people but I wanted to touch on some other points. I also live in Colorado in the shadow of what is one of the busiest general aviation airports in the country.
48:49
You know, so we've been involved in a lot of this work and discovered through it that they were dumping lead on our communities, on our schools and our kids on our parks.
49:00
So I think that's something that's motivated a lot of us in terms of this sort of advocacy work we're doing and then our comments here tonight. I wanted to emphasize that, you know, in 72% of the airborne lead pollution Colorado comes from aviation fuel
49:16
exhaust.
49:18
You don't hear anything about it in the press, not from the government. Not anyone.
49:24
According to the CDC NIOSH website, it doesn't matter if a person breathes in or swallows or absorbs blood particles the health effects are the same. However, the body absorbs higher levels of lead when it's breathed in.
49:35
So for those of us who are breathing in this leaded exhaust on a daily basis, that's a significant threat to our health.
49:43
The same agency does not list aviation as one of its jobs that may have lead exposure. They do the occupations artists in case you happen to work with stained glass.
49:54
But they don't list aviation as one of those industries. I really think this is a glaring oversight and it almost has to be intentional. I contacted them months ago about this issue and of course it's still not listed on their website.
50:12
I... even the EPA website actually says that most of our lead exposure comes from the past use of leaded gasoline, and there's no acknowledgement of this current and continuous onslaught that we're getting from the general aviation industry.
50:28
You know the city of Denver recently undertook a $500 million project to replace all the leaded service piping in Denver. Congress has proposed an infrastructure bill that does the same.
50:37
We know that lead is a threat to human health. We've taken significant steps to reduce our whole country's exposure. We continue to ignore at worst and give a path to at best the lead in our nation's aviation fuel, and we allow the FAA to dictate flight
50:52
patterns leaving our skies subject to pilots who can fly wherever they want, whenever they want, and there's no regard for people on the ground or the kids that might be exposed to those hazards.
51:02
But I think what's been really missing since 1970 is the pressure to eliminate the use of this leaded fuel. Alternative fuels currently are available that can be utilized by up to 80% of the nation's general aviation fleet.
51:15
However, there's only one airport in the entire state of Colorado that sells even one of these options.
51:20
There's no question that lead is a threat to the health of everybody in this country, and there's no question about where substantial sources of this lead is coming from.
51:28
Now that the EPA has signaled its intent to release an endangerment finding about the leaded aviation fuel,
51:35
I'd love to have you guys explain how you intend to eliminate lead pollution from aircrafts which is responsible for 70% of the total lead particular in our air and soil.
51:46
We have taken long enough to address the issue. Even another day allowing this to happen is borderline unconscionable.
51:53
What would it take for the EPA and with the participation of the overall government to finally address this.
52:00
Thank you.
52:34
[Donna Okray Parman, Private Citizen] Thank you. Thank you for setting up this meeting, and for allowing participants some time.
52:40
I'm a founder of a group up in Gilpin, Colorado. Our group has been fighting for two years against the FAA. Trying to get as much help as we can about the fact that they've just instituted or implemented their, their next gen plan, which redirected air
53:01
traffic all the way, all around Caldwell, around the United States per state.
53:06
The problem here is that with all this lead coming out of these aircraft,
53:13
it's really dangerous. We live at -- above 9000 feet.
53:19
I know that they cannot fly below 14,000 but sometimes, and I'm not kidding - yesterday I saw the name Southwest on the flight flying over my head. And we have had so many people up here complaining since they, especially since they redirected the flight
53:37
paths.
53:38
They've essentially taken the entire airspace that surrounds Colorado and put it, taking it out of the corners and made it like a cross across the center of the state.
53:50
So, all of the westbound, or Western traffic inbound and outbound, go right over this tiny county in the mountains, which is at - we're at 9300 to be exact.
54:02
We have over 330 members of a committee that we formed two years ago called GRIFT which is Gilpin residents refuse increased fight traffic.
54:14
They have - it has increased
54:17
at least 15 times since we did this study, a year and a half ago, just after Covid hit. My concern now is way more than the noise, - which the noise is horrific because as the jets come over the mountains, it's just - the sound just bounces from one rock to
54:34
another and it's really - there are people who call me and say it sounded like that jet was going to fly into my bedroom at two o'clock this morning. But worse than that is the lead.
54:46
So I appreciate - I was listening to the others, and from Colorado especially, and who are concerned about the lead from the jets and the general aviation planes.
54:57
It's huge. It's, it's about the life and health of the people in in these states.
55:05
And I hope that this connection through your group that the FDA, -- the EPA will contact the FAA regarding this, because we had Administrator Dixon here with a team of people in the Denver capital, just two years ago, and who and he said nothing's chiseled
55:22
in stone. So I was really hoping to get those jets
55:25
taken - spread it all out, let everybody get less instead of one get more. I guess that would be my bottom, bottom request and thanks again for having us.
55:36
Thank you Donna. I appreciate your comments.
55:40
Our next speaker is Dr. John Ray. Dr. Ray if you're on please raise your hands. We can see you. Thank you.
55:48
Thank you.
55:50
[John Ray, CTEC EPA TAG Butte MT] The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry says lead is toxic wherever it is found
56:00
and it is found everywhere.
56:03
Under the auspices of the EPA Superfund program in Region 8,
56:09
And I must say, with the full cooperation with the principal PRP in Butte, which is the Atlantic Richfield Company, Butte, Montana, has developed a comprehensive lead abatement program that can serve as a national model and operationalize the goals and the
56:29
objectives of the EPA is lead strategy. That program is called the residential metals abatement program, and it has the following salient features that, as I said, can serve as a model for the implementation of EPA's lead strategy.
56:50
First of all, it is comprehensive. Virtually all pathways of lead exposure are evaluated and remediated if necessary. That includes lead found in soil, living spaces, attics, and even lead based paint. All of the user remediated as needed.
57:15
Secondly, they RMAP program contains robust community outreach.
57:21
For example, a brochure entitled Be Contaminated Smart that gives individuals and families actions they can take to protect ourselves - themselves - has been distributed to over 14,000 people in Butte.
57:36
Third, environmental justice is a major feature of the RMAP program. Butte has a higher than proportional average of low income citizens, and it is emphasized in outreach, in the RMAP program. Also particular attention has been paid and the development
57:56
of action levels in Butte to the particular health needs of our environmental justice community.
58:04
This RMAP program goes far beyond anything that could be ordered under Superfund and it represents a cooperative effort between local government, EPA - both region 8 in the Montana office, and the main PRP for Butte Atlantic Richfield Company.
58:23
As a result of this program, blood lead levels in children that were elevated before the program started have been significantly reduced.
58:34
This program is totally congruent with the EPA lead strategy that is being discussed tonight. And I think can serve as a model to follow nationwide. The experience in Butte shows that a comprehensive approach is feasible and workable.
58:54
I support the lead strategy and would argue that the residential metals abatement program in Butte is an excellent model for implementing this strategy.
59:05
Thank you for your listening to me.
71:50
[Velma Campbell, Private Citizen] Thank you. And I appreciate the - excuse me - the opportunity to offer public comment this evening. As Mark just announced I'm from Pueblo, Colorado. I'm a medical doctor practicing here in Pueblo in public health, specializing in Occupational and Environmental
72:15
Health, and I'm also active in a number of organizations, including Mothers Out Front, and Physicians for Social Responsibility.
72:27
And here in Pueblo, we are an environmental justice community, meeting a number of the criteria, including at least 25% of our population being at or below the poverty level.
72:43
We have a large percentage, if not majority Latino - Latina community,
72:51
and we have a strong industrial background with a significant ongoing air pollution sources, as well as a long history of air pollution and soil contamination.
73:10
We're location for the Colorado Smelter Superfund site here in Region 8.
73:19
And so, I'm addressing two of your goals on the lead strategy; one is actually the first goal to which is to identify communities with high lead exposures and remedy, and develop approaches to those communities.
73:42
In addition to our Superfund site, Pueblo has been identified in articles by Dr. Diawara of Colorado State University in Pueblo, as having widespread industrial legacy pollution
74:00
with metals, including lead.
74:03
And we have a large number of our communities that have not been -- of our neighborhoods that have not been studied otherwise.
74:10
But we rank very highly in chronic diseases. And in academic issues for children.
74:21
In addition, I want to comment on the cleanup, and I would encourage, as did an earlier registered speaker, that the goals of the EPA cleanup be coordinated with the CDC levels.
74:39
Our EPA cleaned up here, strives for a little greater than six micrograms of blood lead level in 95% of children exposed after cleanup.
74:56
And we feel that is too high. We were told that, that our cleanup levels do not have anything to do with the CDC cleanup levels, because they're two different agencies, and two different purposes.
75:12
That's an inadequate explanation, and I hope that EPA Superfund
75:23
will begin to work more closely with CDC as part of your strategy to help reduce children's exposures. So thanks very much and I appreciate it.
75:56
[Denaya Wilson, Private Citizen] And I'm Danae Wilson, small business owner, providing lead renovation abatement and testing classes, primarily in Region 8. We are advocates of providing accessible training aimed at diverse groups of tradespeople and we request the EPA to allow
76:12
for additional learning modalities, including online asynchronous and remote synchronous options to satisfy the ongoing discipline renewal and continuing education requirements.
76:25
Lead hazards are not localized to cities where commonly more options exist for in-person and classroom training. In many cases our students are looking for renewal solutions from military bases in Turkey and Korea, or from remote locations in Alaska and Colorado.
76:42
Colorado. Requiring an individual to an exhaust to exhaust a large amount of costs to travel for training is not necessary with all the available options for remote learning.
76:54
Additionally, additionally, this travel may not be possible during times of travel restrictions, or perhaps by the lack of available funding. Barriers to training and certification limit the number of certified professionals that can identify and address
77:11
lead hazards. Reducing lead exposures and disparities in the US, in US communities, starts with a strong educational network of industry experts. The building and maintaining of which should not be limited to a classroom environment.
77:25
We need to support the future of lead abatement and testing industry.
77:30
The future of the lead abatement and testing industry by allowing for diverse offering of certification options, supporting innovation and therefore increasing the potential to reach a potential reach of critical training services. Under no circumstances
77:47
should have compliance and safety be jeopardized due to the lack of available training classes. Allowing for online training options will also aid increasing the number of lead certified professionals, especially in rural and underserved communities.
78:02
US community should not be faced with an increased exposure to lead paint and dust due to the lack of access to service professionals.
78:10
In conclusion, online and remote training is accessible, has a low environmental and financial impact, can reach students with learning disabilities or language barriers more efficiently.
78:20
This type of training should be allowed by the EPA for renewal of certifications for the performance of lead testing and abatement. Specific recommendation would be for the EPA to update current regulation to allow for online and remote refresher classes.
78:55
And next up is Donna Urban. Donna, can you please unmute yourself? Or Jean, if you can unmute her. Sure that it looks like you unmuted. Yeah, I just did. Thank you.
79:05
[Donna Urban, Quiet Skies - Arapahoe County, CO] Hi, I'm Donna Urban. I live in Centennial, Colorado, I'm approximately one and a half miles from flight paths of the flight training operations from Centennial airport.
79:19
Elizabeth Heidl, Gary Keller and Bri Lehman summarized the problem of leaded aviation fuel
79:26
very well, earlier.
79:28
Although the flight path is not officially directly over my home, I still have many prop planes flying over my area. They fly over the front range sometimes circling repeatedly for hours on end.
79:43
Wind is also a factor, carrying the lead particulates all over into my area of town and other areas. This is a residential neighborhood with people spending time outdoors.
79:56
I'm very concerned about the lead pollution and worry that lead is settling into the soil and water. Our neighborhood has an elementary school and there are several other schools and daycare centers where kids are out playing on the playground equipment,
80:13
right underneath the flight paths in Centennial.
80:16
Because of the dramatic increase in flight training and recreational flying along the entire front range of Colorado, an alternative to leaded fuel must be made a priority.
80:29
Thank you
80:46
[Miki Barnes, Private Citizen] I have unmuted. Thank you so much and thank you for this opportunity. Speaking for these regional meetings I think - I think you're providing a much needed service to communities throughout this country.
81:02
I'm going to read to you now,
81:05
a statement from Congressional Representative Adam Smith, who wrote a
81:11
last November. He had an editorial in the Seattle, - Seattle Times. He introduced a bill
81:18
HR 6050.
81:21
And, he said quote for decades, the US invested in infrastructure and transportation systems and adopted land use policies that have contributed to a high concentration of noise and pollution in low income communities and communities of color.
81:38
Communities near airports and flights or flight pathways are no different. The effects that aviation noise and pollution have on communities is an environmental justice and health equity issue. Residents living in aviation-impacted communities cannot wait
81:55
any longer from relief -- for relief from the public health consequences of exposure to high concentrations of pollutants and high levels of aviation noise.
82:07
Unquote. And I think that resonates with a number of speakers have said here tonight regarding lead. In terms of
82:21
a whole government - government approach, the problem with the FAA, is it gives grants to a number of these airports. And then when a local government like Reed Hillview airport,
82:35
The Santa Clara Board of Supervisors want to close it immediately because of the high lead levels found in children living near the airport, and the FAA plays a heavy handed game telling them they can't close because of grant assurances.
82:55
So I think a whole government approach is going to have to involve looking at the FAA's top down policies. But you know, should any government agency have the right to tell a local community
83:10
they are required to poison their children because of a grant assurance? This is very troubling. I'm also concerned about the huge amount of violence - the huge increase in violent crimes. And I do have to wonder how much spraying people with lead is contributing
83:30
to the higher - the increase in violence and to higher juvenile delinquency levels, and so forth. So I think there are a lot of issues here that need to be reviewed and need to be expedited.
83:44
These are serious, serious matters. They can't go on year after year after year. They need to be addressed now. Thank you so much.
84:07
[Steve Douglas, Northern Range Concern Citizens] I appreciated that I couldn't speak earlier.
84:12
As a part of North Range Concerned Citizens here in Commerce City and former city council member as well, from 2011 to 2018.
84:35
this issue about lead in the water and then from airports - we have DIA up in the north range, just about 7 miles from the east and flight patterns are consistent. I can, - I did a, a
84:46
time lapse video of certain things from outside our house and you can see these planes just come in one after another, I mean it's like, probably, you know, 10 or 20 in a row, just one after another round the clock 24 hours a day.
84:59
And we have Bar Lake -we have a lot of places that have open air, open water source that collects all that toxins. And that just floats down, and then - you know, lays on top the land and so we have a lot of farmland.
85:17
And so it's just being repeated. So to me, this is like another forever - another forever type of chemical.
85:24
And it's everywhere. And then we have Suncor, which has lead issues, as well. And we have schools within, - within that portion of Commerce City. But the problem is, is we have old trunk lines underneath the ground that all connect to neighborhoods.
85:47
So this runs - this gamut runs all over the place.
85:52
And whether it's a flush, or whatever, that those pipes are still underneath the ground. So whatever is being collected. And on top of that, we have a new pipeline that's coming in from DIA.
86:08
It has come through Commerce City that's going to go up to a solid waste facility. And it all gets recycled somehow.
86:16
So, it ends up being back into our, our soil system - back into our bodies.
86:23
And so, this has to be done in a way where this is going to be an effort to EPA dispairs - um disparities in promoting environmental justice, it has to be a whole EPA, and a whole government approach.
86:40
This cannot be put on one sector. And so, I urge, how much money is a government, the federal government spending with our military complex every year
86:53
when that money could go towards replacing pipes that have lead exposure. So that's all I have to say. I mean, I luckily said a lot - a lot of things but I just wanted to, to add that in.
87:07
So, Thank you very much.
87:47
I see Jackie Gerard.
87:50
[Jackie Girard, HUD] Hello and thanks for having me today. My name is Jackie Gerard. I'm in Helena, Montana. I just have a quick comment. There are a handful of states that are not EPA lead certified
88:02
and I'm wondering if this is an opportunity where we can pull them into the fold and kind of fast track them into becoming certified. Montana is one of those.
88:12
Thank you.
89:39
[Miki Barnes, Private Citizen] It is me again. I have a question I'd like to ask. When the blood lead levels reach a crisis in Flint, Michigan,
89:49
an an emergency was declared, because of elevated blood lead levels. At Reid Hillview, the blood lead levels were equal in some children to Flint Michigan crisis levels, and sometimes actually were higher than those levels.
90:13
Now Reid Hillview is the - on the list of 100 top lead polluting airports in the country it's 34th.
90:23
So there's enough - other airports that are admitting significantly more lead on a regular basis
90:29
than Reid Hillview does. What would it take for the EPA to declare a national emergency? Over 20,000 airlports that are emitting
90:43
day in and day out. Miki. Miki I apologize, it looks like you've shifted your device microphone to your mic is a bit muffled I apologize. Oh, I'm sorry.
90:52
okay we go.
90:54
What would it take for the EPA to declare a national emergency in communities across this country? There are 20,000 lead emitting airports. What would it take for the EPA to declare a national emergency, just as in Michigan?
91:13
They were compelled to declare an emergency to protect the children there from the lead
91:19
polluted waters.
91:22
So that's a question I would like to have addressed and if it takes a whole government approach, then so be it. But we truly need an expedited response to this to protect children and other people in our communities
91:38
from these toxic lead levels.
91:41
And I like to say to a lot of it is, is that the FAA has formed partnerships with China and other countries, and they recruit their pilots to come over here and train.
91:56
China has militarized 80% of their airspace so they send their pilots here to train. It's all paid for by the state-owned airlines.
92:08
In China, the state airlines in the military are fused. So, I mean we don't even know if we're poisoning people with lead by Chinese pilots who are actually going to go back and serve in the military there.
92:27
So that's a concern as well but there's any number of other countries also training their pilots here. This was not - this did not include a vote of the people. There was no democracy, it was FAA authoritarian decree.
92:42
Thank you