One of the great inhibitors is the tremendous cost. Lead has been banned from paint since 1978. But children in older buildings are still at risk of learning disabilities and behavioral problems if they eat the paint as it flakes off door jams and window sills. An estimated 900,000 children under age 6 have high levels of lead in their blood. Contractors who do the renovation work have endorsed the EPA proposal, as have organizations trying to reduce lead poisoning.
Most kids get lead poisoning because of conditions in and around their house.
Few kids are getting lead poisoning because they're drinking contaminated groundwater,'' said Ellen Tohn, an environmental consultant with the Alliance to End Childhood Lead Poisoning. View headlines 1998 Times Mirror Interzines . Privacy policy .