Tag: Lead poisoning

Apr 13

2016

Council ignores warning on lead test kits

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The Common Council’s chief response to the city’s lead poisoning problem involves a commitment to distribute lead test kits to residents that one expert has termed a “very dangerous idea” with the potential for “extremely hazardous” results. No fewer than three experts challenged the wisdom of the Council’s plan in interviews with Investigative Post, including one who shared her concerns in writing last month with the office of Masten Council Member Ulysees Wingo. Those warnings have not been shared with other members, even when the test kits were discussed during Tuesday’s Council meeting. “Overall, I think there is a strong national[...]

Posted 8 years ago

Mar 24

2016

Quick Hit: Buffalo Water has no answers on lead

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The Buffalo Water Board’s one-page info sheet about its lead testing program fails to provide much substance, especially for a city that still has a serious lead poisoning problem involving its housing stock. The water board’s online info sheet is in response to the catastrophe with Flint, Michigan’s water supply. What the water board has yet to release is the number of service lines – the stretch of pipe of that connects houses with water mains running under streets – that contain lead. The topic has not surfaced in any of board meeting minutes for at least three years. I[...]

Posted 8 years ago

Mar 13

2016

Outrages: A start in dealing with lead

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Steve Brown and I discuss the first bit of movement to address Buffalo’s lead problem on this week’s video edition of Outrages & Insights. I said that Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz is showing some leadership in making his proposal to hire more inspectors and lower the threshold that riggers medical intervention in children who test positive for lead in their blood. But I also note that Poloncarz’s proposal is only a start and that the problem demands a much greater commitment of resources beyond just the county. Where is City Hall in all this? So far, nowhere to be[...]

Posted 8 years ago

Mar 9

2016

Poloncarz leads on lead while Brown dithers

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There’s been chatter about the need for someone to step up and champion the cause of reducing lead hazards in the city. I wouldn’t say Erie County Mark Poloncarz seized the leadership mantle Wednesday, but he became the first local official to advance a meaningful proposal for addressing the issue. So, considering the political landscape, he has become a giant among midgets. Poloncarz announced an initiative that has several important components: The county Health Department would hire six additional inspectors to complement the 12½ already on staff to conduct housing inspections for lead and other health violations. A nurse and[...]

Posted 8 years ago

Mar 2

2016

Quick Hit: Buffalo’s lead poisoning problem

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In the past two weeks, Governor Andrew Cuomo, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, and US Senator Charles Schumer have each sounded a call for action in Buffalo, where lead poisoning remains a significant problem. Whether the calls get answered on the local level is another story.

Posted 8 years ago

Feb 29

2016

State money for lead won’t go far

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State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced over the weekend that his office is “investing” $346,825 in the Buffalo Green and Healthy Homes Initiative. This is the attorney general’s first financial commitment earmarked for lead programs in Buffalo since the initiative launched in 2009. About 40 low-income, owner-occupied homes will benefit from the attorney general’s funding. That’s in addition to the 882 homes already made lead-safe since the program’s inception. While those numbers represent a degree of progress, consider there are 85,000 housing units in Buffalo at risk for lead hazards. In other words, about 1 percent of the homes were[...]

Posted 8 years ago

Feb 25

2016

Schumer: State needs stricter lead standards

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Sen. Chuck Schumer has told Investigative Post that the state should bring its standards for lead poisoning in line with stricter federal thresholds, which would almost certainly show the problem is worse than currently reported. Schumer’s comments add to the growing call for action in Buffalo, where elevated lead levels have been a problem for years because of the presence of lead paint in its old housing stock. Four years ago, the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention lowered the threshold that requires medical care for children testing positive for lead in their blood from 10 to 5 micrograms per deciliter of[...]

Posted 8 years ago
Investigative Post

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