Environmental Stewardship for Homeowners - 8

Lead In and Around the Home: Identifying and Managing Its Sources

Why should you be concerned about lead in your home?

Lead poisoning, considered by many public health experts to be the number one environmental health problem in the United States, is a serious but preventable hazard to human health.

Lead is dangerous because it is widely used, it never breaks down into a harmless substance, and it lasts forever in the environment. It is especially dangerous to children, and reducing their exposure is vital to their health.

A weighty yet soft material, it has numerous uses in modern life, from coins, fine crystal, ceramics, printer's ink, solder, water pipes, shields against radioactivity, ammunition, and even fishing gear, to one-time additives for gasoline and paint. Some household items, such as older, vinyl miniblinds, even contain minor amounts of lead. You can take steps to
reduce your exposure to lead, but you cannot avoid it completely.

Many homes have one or more sources of lead. An estimated one in eleven American
children has an elevated blood-lead level, and the chief suspect is lead-based paint, primarily from homes built before 1950. Families also can be exposed to lead from their drinking water, soil, and other sources.

Lead can have wide-ranging effects in humans, depending upon the level. Even very low lead levels can affect children's developing nervous systems, causing delayed development, lowered IQ scores, reading and learning problems, hyperactivity, and discipline problems. Larger doses of lead can affect adults as well as children and can cause problems such as high blood pressure, anemia, kidney trouble, and reproductive disorders. During substantial lead removal from the home, children and pregnant or nursing women should live elsewhere until the site has been declared safe from lead residue. Lead tends to accumulate in the body, and the effects of lead poisoning usually cannot be reversed.

The most common sources of lead are lead-based paint, household dust (which can contain lead dust from deteriorating lead-based paint or remodeling), soils contaminated by disintegrating lead-based paint, and drinking water delivered through pipes that have been sealed with or come in contact with lead solder.

What is the North Carolina Home*A*Syst Program?

The North Carolina Home*A*Syst program has a series of publications that can help you be a good environmental steward and protect the health and well-being of your family. This publication will help you identify and control sources of lead. If there is a problem or a potential problem, the Home*A*Syst publications have information about how to solve it. The publications also list the North Carolina agencies responsible for helping you solve your particular problems.

The goal of the North Carolina Home*A*Syst program is to help protect your health and the environment.

How can we help?

This publication addresses sources of lead in and around the home and explains the health hazards associated with exposure to lead. Reading this fact sheet and answering its questions will help you identify and evaluate lead-related risks to your family's health.

After you have read this publication, answer the questions in the margins. Your answers will help you to see where you may have potential problems.

• If you answer a or b, you have few problems with lead exposure.
• If you answer c or d, you may have a problem with lead exposure. You will want to consider making changes in your household activities in order to protect your family's health.

If you would like further help in assessing sources of lead in your home, please contact your nearest Cooperative Extension Service Center and talk with your Extension agent.

Identifying Lead Sources Inside the Home

1. When was your home built?

According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 74 percent of all homes built before 1980 contain potentially dangerous levels of lead paint. Although lead has been banned from house paint since 1978, most U.S. homes were built before then. Homes built before 1950 are very likely to have high lead levels, especially in paint used on windows including sashes and frames and on exterior surfaces. You also may find lead-based paint on other surfaces in your home including walls, interior trim, floors, radiators, doors, stairway railings, porches, and exterior siding.

If your home was built before 1978 or you are selling, buying, or renting a house, apartment, or other home, you need to know about a federal regulation called Title X. Title X is the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992, which was designed to help prevent lead poisoning in children and to reduce potential lead hazards in the nation's housing. Since 1996, the owners of residential dwellings have had to disclose information about lead in the home. For more information, contact the National Lead Information Center at 1-800-424-LEAD and request a copy of Protect Your Family from Lead in Your Home.

1. Circle the answer that best describes when your home was built.

1. After 1978.
2. Between 1950 and 1978.
3. Before 1950.
4. I don't know when my home was built.

2. Does your interior paint contain lead and, if so, what is its condition?

Lead-based paint (LBP) is the most common source of high lead exposure for children. Most exposure, however, comes from contact with contaminated household dust rather than from eating paint chips. As paint ages or as painted surfaces rub against each other, lead-containing dust is created. If your LBP is perfectly intact, then the risk of accidental ingestion is greatly reduced. But if lead-based paint is cracking, chipping, flaking, or being rubbed by contact, then the danger of lead exposure is much higher.

Testing for lead

To find out if your paint contains lead—and if so, how much—have paint samples analyzed at a laboratory certified by National Lead Laboratory Accreditation Program.  The North Carolina Health Hazards Control Branch at the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has this listing. (For more information, check Resources at the end of the publication.)

The North Carolina Health Hazards Control Branch also has a listing of companies that will come out and test for lead in the home. Paint samples may be examined on-site using a portable X-ray fluorescence detector. Inspectors may take surface-wipe samples, which are used to test dust for lead contamination. Some laboratories may analyze surface-wipe samples collected by the homeowner. Do-it-yourself home test kits are available in home centers and other stores. These kits indicate the presence or absence of lead but do not indicate how much lead is present. Home test kits may not be reliable for testing surfaces in your home; it is best to have such tests done by a professional. Check with the environmental division of your local health department, the North Carolina Health Hazards Control Branch at HHS, or the National Lead Information Center.

In North Carolina, if a child six years of age or younger is suspected of being exposed to lead or has an elevated level of lead in his or her blood, the health department will test for lead in the home at no charge. Contact the environmental division of your local health department for additional information. The North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources has regional children's lead inspectors who operate under the Children's Environmental Health Branch. This branch administers the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program. For additional information concerning the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program, see this web site: http://www.deh.enr.state.nc.us/ehs/Children%20Health/Lead/lead.html or http://checc.sph.unc.edu/rooms/library/lead/

These sites provide information on North Carolina's rules governing lead poisoning prevention in children.

If you find lead...

Remodeling or renovating in areas having LBP is especially risky. Scraping, sanding, or burning LBP creates extremely hazardous conditions, and strict precautions need to be taken—especially if children, pregnant women, or pets are present. You should hire a certified lead inspector and lead-abatement contractor to inspect and do the work. If a potential source of lead exposure is found in the home of a child with an elevated blood-lead level, the homeowners must submit a written plan for abatement developed by a contractor to the local health department.

North Carolina currently has no certification requirements for lead abatement contractors. The contractor should provide proof that he or she has been trained in lead abatement procedures. It is important to ask for the names of at least three of their lead abatement customers.

There are several options for dealing with lead paint, such as paint removal, replacement of lead-painted parts (such as windows, door jambs, and moldings), liquid encapsulates (special paint-like products that cover a surface), and removal of leaded surfaces off-site. LBP removal by untrained workers who do not use the proper methods and equipment can create a much greater health hazard than just leaving the paint alone. Since June 1999, contractors have had to give occupants of homes with LBP being remodeled a pamphlet on lead poisoning hazards if the work disturbs more than 2 square feet of paint in pre-1978 housing. This is required under the Lead-Based Paint Pre-Renovation Education Rule.

You can take simple measures to control exposure to lead by frequently damp mopping/dusting. Use of a conventional vacuum cleaner releases finer dust particles back into the room. Therefore, don't vacuum unless you use a special high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) vacuum cleaner. In recent years, stores have begun selling high performance and HEPA vacuum cleaners. It is also possible to buy high performance filters (HEPA) for older vacuum cleaners.

Loose paint chips can be picked up with an adhesive tape. Frequent washing of children's hands and toys will reduce exposure as well. It is extremely important to avoid sanding, scraping, or burning lead paint (or any other activities that will generate a significant amount of dust).

2. Circle the answer(s) that best describes the condition of your interior paint and whether it contains lead.

1. There is no lead-based paint in my home.
2. There is lead-based paint, but it is intact.
3. There is defective lead-based paint, and it is chipping, peeling, or chalking, or recent remodeling has disturbed it.
4. I do not know if there is lead-based paint in my home.

3. Is there lead paint on your windows and door frames and, if so, what is its condition?

Lead was added to paint to inhibit the growth of mold on the surface of the paint. Thus, paints with higher lead levels were used where exposure to moisture is greatest: on windows, doors, bathrooms, and exterior walls. If high-lead-based paint is intact, it poses little risk. But, if it is chipping or chalking off, or is scraped or sanded during repairs, the risk of exposure is great. Lead dust, which is the form of lead most easily ingested, is likely to come from weathering (chalking) paint and especially from surfaces that rub or slide together, such as a window in its frame.
Paint or dust containing lead-based paint is of great danger to children. Young children put their hands and everything else in their mouths. Small pieces of paint that you may not be able to see can come off windows, doors, and walls, which creates dust containing lead. Children who crawl on the floor, put toys in their mouths, or play in soil around the home or daycare can be poisoned.

3. Circle the answer that best describes the condition of the paint on your windows and door frames.

1. There is no lead-based paint in my home.
2. Windows or doors with lead-based paint have been replaced, or lead-based paint is present but intact.
3. Lead-based paint on windows or door frames is chipping, peeling, or chalking, or untrained workers have recently removed the paint.
4. I do not know if there is lead-based paint on my windows and door frames.

4. Is your drinking water lead-free?

Although your drinking water is not usually a concentrated lead source like paint or soil, it still can pose risks to your family. Lead can enter your water from several points: lead pipes that bring water to the home, lead pipe contractors, lead-soldered joints in copper plumbing, and lead-containing brass faucets and pump components. In some private wells, underwater pumps with brass fittings can cause elevated lead concentrations in drinking water, especially with new pumps or if the water is soft. Water that is soft or acidic can be corrosive and tends to dissolve lead from pipes and fittings more easily than if water is hard. Although home water softeners have benefits, they may increase the amount of lead leached into your drinking water if lead is present in your water system. In 1986, the United States banned the use of lead pipes for drinking water supplies.

Most of the lead in drinking water in North Carolina comes from plumbing in the house, not from the local treatment plant or well. Since much of the lead that appears at the tap comes from household lines rather than from the water supply itself, the "Maximum Contaminant Level" (MCL) no longer exists. (An MCL is defined as the limit on the amount of a contaminant that may legally be present in municipally supplied water). Instead, an "action level" of 15 micrograms per liter (ug/L), 0.015 parts per million (ppm), or 0.015 milligrams per liter (mg/L) was established. Operators of water systems have been informed that they should supply water that does not contain lead. If municipal water supplies do have elevated levels of lead, operators must take certain steps to correct the problem. For more information, contact your local Cooperative Extension Center and ask for the publication, Lead in Drinking Water, FCS-395.

How can you minimize lead in your water?

Water testing will show if lead is present in your water and whether your water is "aggressive" (acidic or soft). Contact a state-certified laboratory (see Resources—State for a list of laboratories provided by the State Laboratory of Public Health, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services) or the environmental division of your local health department for instructions on how to take a water sample. If lead levels are greater that 15 parts per billion (ppb), action is recommended.  Draw the first sample from the kitchen faucet several hours after the last time you used the faucet. Draw the second sample from the same faucet after allowing the water to run for least two minutes to see whether flushing the pipes decreased the lead levels if they were elevated in the first sample.

If you have elevated levels of lead in the water or suspect that you do, and if your water system has not been used for more than four hours, flush the system by letting the cold water run for two or more minutes before using it for drinking or cooking. A list of publications with recommendations about reducing lead levels is included at the end of this fact sheet.

Always use cold tap water for cooking and drinking; hot water is more likely to dissolve lead. Always use COLD water to mix infant formula. For severe lead contamination, you may need to install a water treatment device, such as a reverse osmosis system, a distillation system, or an activated carbon filter or possibly have your plumbing replaced. Buying bottled water for drinking and cooking may be the easiest and least expensive option for dealing with severe lead contamination. Be aware, however, that bottled water is not necessarily lead-free; call or write to the bottling company and request a copy of its most recent water test results.

4. Circle the answer that best describes the condition of your drinking water.

1. There are no lead water pipes, leaded solder, or brass fixtures in the plumbing system in my home. (Lead solder was banned in 1986.)
2. Lead is present in the plumbing system, but the water has been tested and precautions are being taken.
3. I have not had my water tested, and no precautions are being taken, although it is likely that lead is present in the plumbing system.
4. I have had my water tested and found lead present, but no precautions are being taken, OR do not know.

Using bottled water for drinking and cooking is one option for dealing with lead-contaminated water.

Identifying Lead Sources Outside the Home

5. Is the soil around your home contaminated by lead?

The soil around your home can be a significant source of lead exposure, and levels tend to be highest where the foundation walls meet the ground. Lead-contaminated soil is a problem when children play outdoors, when soil is tracked inside the home, and when vegetables are grown in contaminated soil. Soils may be contaminated by flaking, peeling, or chalking lead-based paint that follows the "drip line" of the house. The "drip line" is an imaginary line created in the ground by the water running off the top of a house or structure.  

5. Circle the answer that best describes what the sources of lead are outside your home.

1. There is no lead-based paint on the exterior of my home.
2. Lead-based paint is present, but intact, and grass or dense landscape plantings surround the house.
3. Exterior lead-based paint is weathered or chalking, but foot traffic is kept away from contaminated soil.
4. Lead-based paint is chipping, peeling, or chalking and there is bare soil or foot traffic below painted walls, OR do not know.

6. Do you live or work near areas that may have high levels of lead?

In areas with heavy traffic, leaded gasoline exhaust has been responsible for high levels of lead in soil, with levels highest near major highways. The shift to unleaded gasoline had reduced this risk, but lead levels still can be high after years of contamination. Large farming operations that used leaded gasoline for equipment, vehicles, etc. may have contaminated soil with lead. Other areas of concern are residential backyards, daycare centers and schoolyards, playgrounds, parks, and other areas where children gather.

If you live near industrial lead sources such as incinerators, lead smelters, and battery recyclers, you should be concerned about lead in your soil. Some activities that may create lead dust are construction, sandblasting, bridge construction, ship building, auto repair, furniture refinishing, and foundry casting. Urban residents should consider having their soil tested before planting a vegetable garden.

What can soil tests reveal and what lead level is safe?

Testing your soil is the only way to detect whether it has a lead problem. Many certified laboratories can perform this testing. Some local health departments also may test soil for free or for a small fee. If high levels are found, you can take several steps. Planting grass or covering soil with mulch can keep your family from tracking the soil indoors or breathing soil dust. In some cases, removal and replacement of heavily contaminated topsoil may be recommended.

Relatively safe background levels in soils range from non-detectable to 200 parts per million (ppm). Soils with lead levels of 500 ppm or more should not be used for growing vegetables unless the top 6 to 8 inches are replaced with non-contaminated topsoil. In undisturbed lead-contaminated soil, lead usually is found in the top 2 to 3 inches.

Lead levels in soil within 85 feet of busy roads are typically 30 to 2,000 ppm higher than natural levels, and some soils have as much as 10,000 ppm. Soils adjacent to houses with leaded exterior paint also may have lead levels as high as 10,000 ppm. Levels near industrial sources can be dangerously high, especially in areas downwind. Old orchards also may have high lead levels due to lead-containing pesticides applied in the 1940s.

6. Circle the answer that best describes the condition of your soil.

1. No lead-related industries or incinerators are near my home.
2. No major roads, older farming operations, or work sites produce lead dust within 85 feet of my house.
3. There are smelters, battery factories, recycling facilities, or other lead-related industries near my home.
4. A major road is within 85 feet of my house, OR do not know.

Health Effects of Lead on Children

7. Are your children being affected by lead?

Children six years old and younger are much more likely to be affected by lead than older children and adults. Because children crawl on floors, pull up on window sills, and like to put their fingers, toys, and other objects in their mouths, they are more likely to ingest lead. Children are at greatest risk from lead because their bodies are developing, and they absorb up to 50 percent of the lead they ingest. Adults absorb only about 10 percent.

Most children with elevated blood-lead levels do not show visible symptoms. A blood test is the only way to detect the problem. Since lead is widespread in our environment, it is almost impossible to have a zero level in the blood. Lead levels are measured in micrograms per deciliter (ug/dL) of blood. Levels of 10 ug/dL or higher are considered elevated in children and are likely to cause negative effects.

The lowest levels of lead poisoning can damage the brain. At higher levels of poisoning, symptoms may include tiredness, a short attention span, restlessness, poor appetite, constipation, headache, sudden behavior change, vomiting, and hearing loss. Many of these symptoms may be mistaken for other illnesses.

It is not a common practice for children age six and under to be tested for lead. But if you live in an older home, your home has been remodeled, or a child at the school or daycare center your children attend or one of your other children has tested high for lead, ask the doctor or your local health department to test your children. If the health department has found elevated levels of lead in your home and you have a child six years of age or younger, it will test at no charge in North Carolina. It is recommended that children be tested beginning at six months of age, and then every year until age six. The test requires a small blood sample.

7. Circle the answer that best describes how lead has affected your children.

1. I have no children six years of age or younger, or no blood-lead levels were detected in my child's blood.
2. My child's blood-lead level is under 10 ug/dL.
3. My child's blood-lead level is 10 ug/dL or higher.
4. I have not had my young child's blood-lead level tested.

A blood test is the only way to detect elevated lead levels.

For More Information

• Blood tests: Contact your family physician or pediatrician or public health clinics or local health department.
• Testing of paint samples and drinking water: Contact the environmental division of your local health department or local North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service Center, or the State Laboratory of Public Health (see Resources—State) for a list of certified laboratories.
• Educational information for parents and others: Contact your local North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service Center.

Resources

State of North Carolina

• North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service, Box 7605, NC State University, Raleigh, NC 27695-7605, Tel: 919-515-9155, Fax: 919-515-2786, Website: www.ces.ncsu.edu .  Provides educational information and public education.
• Children's Environmental Health Branch, Environmental Health Services Section, Division of Environmental Health, North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources, 1632 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1632, Tel: 919-716-6381, Fax: 919-716-4739, Website: http://www.deh.enr.state.nc.us/ehs/Children%20Health/index.html . Oversees all childhood lead poisoning prevention activities including screening policy, medical and environmental intervention, data analysis and distribution, public education efforts, medical and environmental data collection and management, and follow-up of lead-poisoned children.
• Health Hazards Control Branch, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, PO Box 29601, Raleigh, NC 27626-0601, Tel: 919-733-0820; Fax: (919) 733-8493. Trains and certifies workers, supervisors, inspectors, and risk assessors involved in managing lead abatement and other health hazards.
• State Laboratory of Public Health, Division of Epidemiology, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, PO Box 28047, Raleigh, NC 27611-8047, Tel: 919-733-7834, Fax: 919-733-8695, Website: http://slph.state.nc.us/ClinicalChemistry/default.asp.   Performs blood-lead analysis (Tel: 919-733-3937) and environmental sample analysis (Tel: 919-733-7308).
• Division of Waste Management, North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources, PO Box 29603, Raleigh, NC 27611-9603, Tel: 800-623-6748 or 919-733-4996, Fax: 919-715-3605, Website: http://wastenot.ehnr.state.nc.us/. Oversees management and disposal of hazardous waste, including lead.
• Division of Community Assistance, North Carolina Department of Commerce, 4313 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-4313, Tel: 919-733-2850, Fax: 919-733-5262, Website: http://www.dca.commerce.state.nc.us/lbp.htm. Administers the federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Program in North Carolina.
• American Association of Poison Control Centers lists the Carolinas Poison Center (covers all of North Carolina), 5000 Airport Center Parkway, Suite B, Charlotte, NC 28232-2861, Tel: 800-84TOXIN (800-848-6946) or 704-355-4000, Website: http://www.aapcc.org/. 

National

• National Lead Information Center, 8601 Georgia Ave., Suite 503, Silver Spring, MD 20910. Tel: 800-424-LEAD and 800-LEAD-FYI, Website: http://www.epa.gov/lead/nlic.htm. Provides materials about lead, including information specific to each state and locality. Answers individuals' lead-related questions and provides lists of laboratories that can analyze paint and dust samples for lead.

• National Safety Council, Environmental Health Center, Lead Poisoning Prevention Outreach Program, 1025 Connecticut Ave. NW, Suite 1200, Washington, DC 20036, Tel: 202-293-2270, Fax: 202-293-0032. Website: http://www.nsc.org/ehc.htm. Provides contacts, disclosure information, and Lead Inform newsletter; conducts educational programs; and distributes materials in English and Spanish.

• American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), 141 Northwest Point Blvd., Elk Grove Village, IL 60007-1098. Tel: 847-434-4000, FAX: 847-434-8000, E-mail: kidsdocs@aap.org, Website: http://www.aap.org/family/environ.htm and  http://www.medem.com/search/default.cfm. Provides information on protecting children from environmental hazards, including lead.

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1600 Clifton Rd, NE, Atlanta, GA 30333, Tel: 800-311-3435 or 770-639-3311, Fax: 770-488-7335. E-mail: netinfo@cdc.gov, Website: http://www.cdc.gov/. Promotes health and quality of life by preventing and controlling diseases, injuries, and disability. Works with international, national, state, and local health officials in fighting communicable diseases and epidemics, and in administering aid during disasters and other health emergencies.

• Office of Lead Hazard Control, U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development, 451 7^th St. SW, Room B-133, Washington, DC 20410, Tel: 202-755-1785, Fax: 202-755-1000. Website: http://www.hud.gov/lea/. Advises the HUD Secretary and all HUD program offices and field offices on lead poisoning prevention.

• Alliance To End Childhood Lead Poisoning, 227 Massachusetts Avenue NE, Suite 200, Washington, DC 20002, Tel: 202-543-1147, Fax: 202-543-4466, E-mail: aeclp@aeclp.org, Website: http://www.aeclp.org/. Fights childhood lead poisoning following its 1990 creation as a national, public interest organization devoted to attacking the epidemic of lead poisoning.

• The Lead Listing, Quan Tech, 1815 Fort Myer Dr., Suite 908, Arlington, VA 22209, Tel: 703-312-7837 or 1-888-LEADLIST, Website: http:// www.leadlisting.org/. Helps consumers locate qualified lead service providers (lead inspectors, risk assessors, and abatement contractors).

• The National Center for Lead-Safe Housing, 10227 Wincopin Circle, Suite 205, Columbia, MD 21044, Tel: 410-992-0712, Fax: 410-715-2310, E-mail: ebloomer@enterprisefoundation.org. Evaluates and validates cost-effective strategies for controlling lead hazards. Provides training on lead hazard control and a historical and general introduction to lead use and lead poisoning prevention efforts. Provides information on federal regulations and on financing for lead-based paint hazard control.

Related Publications

Available from the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service

• Lead in the Home: Sources, Hazards, and Solutions (FCS-401) and Lead Abatement in Residential Dwellings (FCS-475).
• Lead in Drinking Water (FCS-395/WQWM-12). http://www2.ncsu.edu/bae/programs/extension/publicat/wqwm/water.html (click on Drinking Water).

Available from Other Sources

• Preventing Lead Poisoning in Young Children. Available from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (see Resources—National).
• Reducing Lead Hazards When Remodeling Your Home, 400 EPA (English), 401 EPA (Spanish version) (EPA/747/R94/002). April 1994. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Available from the National Lead Information Center, http://www.epa.gov/lead/nlicdocs.htm#general (see Resources—National).
• EPA and HUD Move to Protect Children from Lead-Based Paint Poisoning: Disclosure of Lead-Based Paint Hazards in Housing (EPA/747/F96/002). Available from the National Lead Information Center (see Resources—National).
• Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home, 318 EPA (EPA/CPSC/EPA/747/K/94/001). May 1995. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Available from the National Lead Information Center (see Resources—National).
• EPA Releases Final Rule Requiring Distribution of Lead Hazard Information Prior to Renovations (EPA/747/F/98/003). May 1998. Available from the National Lead Information Center (see Resources—National).
• EPA and HUD Real Estate Notification and Disclosure Rule—Questions and Answers, 322 EPA (EPA/HUD/EPA/747/F/96/001). March 1996.
• Lead in Your Drinking Water: Actions You Can Take to Reduce Lead in Drinking Water (EPA/810/F93/001). Available from the National Center for Environmental Publications and Information, PO Box 42419, Cincinnati, OH 45242-2419, Tel: 800-490-9198, Fax: 513-489-8695, Website: http://www.epa.gov/clariton/clhtml/pubtitle.html. 

• http://www.hud.gov/offices/lead/leadhelp.cfm

• http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/lead/

• http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/lead.htm

These publications are available at your county Cooperative Extension Service Center. You may also order these publications from Communication Services, Campus Box 7603, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695-7603.

College of Agriculture & Life Sciences . NC State University
School of Agriculture . NC A&T State University

Prepared by

M. Cassandra Wiggins
Extension Associate, Environmental Housing

Janet Young
Layout and Design Specialist

Concept adapted for North Carolina from materials produced by the National Home*A*Syst Program, University of Wisconsin (author Karen Filchak, University of Connecticut Cooperative Extension).

North Carolina's modification of Farm*A*Syst and Home*A*Syst is coordinated by Deanna L. Osmond, North Carolina State University. Technical editing was provided by Judith A. Gale.

This project has been funded through the United States Department of Agriculture Water Quality Initiative Funds.

Published by

NORTH CAROLINA COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SERVICE

Distributed in furtherance of the Acts of Congress of May 8 and June 30, 1914. Employment and program opportunities are offered to all people regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability. North Carolina State University, North Carolina A&T State University, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and local governments cooperating.

AG-567-08
E01-38950  

This document was last updated on 12/14/2002.