Lead Paint Removal
There are over 3.5 million homes built before 1970 in
- occupants (particularly young children and pregnant women)
- building contractors and
- neighbours
In recent decades, the majority of children admitted to hospitals with lead poisoning were as a result of unsafe home renovation and maintenance activities. The primary cause of lead hazards arising from renovation of pre-1970 buildings is the presence of old lead paint and lead contaminated dust. In-situ dust can be disturbed during work activities or new dust can be generated by disturbing old lead paint. Dust can contaminate work areas or, if uncontained, adjacent areas and neighbouring properties.
The Hazards
Lead can harm virtually every organ in the human body, especially the brain, kidney and reproductive system.
Lead can enter the body through several routes, for example the respiratory tract, the gastrointestinal tract and through skin absorption. Lead gets into the body when you breathe in lead dust or fumes in air. If you swallow food or water that is contaminated by lead dust, small amounts of lead can gradually build up in the body and cause health problems.
Lead cannot be excreted. It stores in the body for up to 20-30 years in bone, from where it can be mobilized back into the blood. From a single exposure, lead is readily absorbed and quickly distributed to the following areas of the body: blood (1%), soft tissue (4%) and bones/teeth (95%). Anaemia can occur if lead accumulates in blood and in blood-forming tissues (bone marrow). Lead distorts the production of red blood cells in the body.
When symptoms first appear, people usually feel a headache or lethargy. Symptoms of moderate to severe exposure include irritability, abdominal pain or constipation, aggressiveness and colic leading to seizures and death. Lead poisoning in children may manifest as developmental delay, learning difficulties or other behavioral problems.