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Home & Facility Maintenance to Reduce Lead Exposure

Lead-based Paint Dangerous for Children

Young children are particularly susceptible to lead poisoning since they are more likely to ingest lead paint chips, flakes, or dust and are more sensitive to the adverse health effects of lead. Elevated lead levels in young children can trigger
  • learning disabilities
  • decreased growth
  • hyperactivity
  • impaired hearing
  • brain damage
Lead can be found in a number of places inside and outside the home. For example, lead can be found in household dust from deteriorating lead-based paint or from soil tracked into the house. It can also be found in drinking water coming from old lead pipes, fixtures and solder.

"Childhood lead poisoning is easily preventable with the right information and awareness. This grant will help Arizona tribal communities raise awareness about preventing lead's adverse health effects," said Administrator Jackson. "This project is an important example of the efforts happening across the country to protect our children from a major health threat."

Lead-based Paint Outreach to Native American Tribes

The Inter-Tribal Council of Arizona is developing culturally specific outreach materials to educate tribal families, especially parents of young children, and tribal staff on the health risks to children from exposure to lead-based paint.

Lead Awareness for Facility Maintenance Personnel

The program specifically reaches out to facility maintenance personnel to stress the importance of using lead-safe work practices when renovating buildings.

The use of lead-based paint in U.S. residential housing was banned in 1978.

Approximately 75% of the U.S. housing stock built before 1978, or 64 million homes, contain some lead-based paint.

For information on EPA's lead paint program, go to: http://www.epa.gov/region09/toxic/lead

For information on lead in paint, dust and soil, visit: http://www.epa.gov/lead

For information on protecting your family from lead hazards, visit: http://www.epa.gov/lead/pubs/leadinfo.htm#where

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today announced that $4 million is available to improve methods to detect and control lead-based paint, mold and other housing-related safety hazards that harm children. These grants will be awarded competitively to multiple Academic and non-profit institutions, State, Tribal or local governments that advance the recognition and control of residential health and safety hazards or improve our understanding of the link between housing and health.

"Anything HUD can do to continue to improve the methods for protecting our children from dangerous home hazards is crucial to American families, their children and their future," said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. "Investing in healthy homes is not only good for health reasons, but good for the environment and the economy as well."

These grants will further the implementation of HUD's Healthy Homes Strategic Plan, and the Surgeon General's Call to Action to Promote Healthy Homes, both recently released, which encourage government agencies, other research organizations, and scientists to develop and support a portfolio of rigorous healthy homes research. In addition, both documents recommend that agencies and sectors work together to provide guidance and technical assistance to support safe, healthy, and environmentally friendly housing options.

HUD will award approximately six to ten grants ranging from $250,000 to $800,000 each. Applications may be downloaded from the Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control's Website. The application provides instructions, including submitting proposals by Federal Express (FedEx), United Parcel Services (UPS) and overnight Express Mail delivery services. The deadline for receiving grants is 5:00 PM eastern time, August 18, 2009.

Take Remodeling to School...Your Child's School!

The Green Schools Initiative points out that a large portion of our population spends their days in unhealthy buildings.  And those are our children.  Greening schools can improve the health and learning productivity of our children...and our future doctors and bosses and in-laws!

Learn more about these "7 Steps to Green Your School" at the website of The Green Schools Initiative...your children are depending on your voice being heard, and your handy man and woman skills being put to work for them.

1.  Establish a Green Team or Eco-committee
2. Adopt an environmental Vision Statement
3. Conduct a School Environmental Survey or Audit
4. Create a Green School Action Plan
5. Monitor and Evaluate Progress
6.  Integrate Greening into the Curriculum
7. Inform, Involve and Celebrate!

The "7 Steps to Green Your School" is adapted from Eco-Schools International,

http://www.eco-schools.org/aboutus/howitworks.htm


Green Schools Initiative

GreenSchools.net

Go Green Radio Debuts this Friday, June 27th!

Don't miss the debut of Go Green Radio this Friday, June 27th, 2008 at 9:00 am PDT/12:00 pm EDT.

You can tune in to our Internet radio show by going to www.voiceamerica.com. Once there, choose Voice America under the "Network" option at the top and at 9 am you will hear our radio program live feed.

In this week's episode we'll be talking with three parents who are "Going Green" on behalf of children. These child advocates are working to protect children, and preserve natural resources for future generations.

Jill Buck, the host of Go Green Radio, wrote the "Go Green Initiative" on her kitchen table in 2002. It is now the largest environmental education program in the world.

Scott McGinnis is an actor/director living in Hollywood. He is also a proud father. His current project - Global Broadcast for Kids (www.globalbroadcast4kids.com) helps kids learn about going green through his team of junior journalists.

Stefani Newman started teensygreen (www.teensygreen.com) in July of 2007 while living in Panama. With teensygreen, Stefani hopes to help modern, like-minded parents make economical, educational, and safe eco-choices for their families without feeling the need to turn their homes upside down!

If you aren't able to tune in this Friday, no worries, you can go online and download the podcast of the show. You are also able to sign-up and have a podcast of the weekly show sent to you automatically.

PODCAST: www.voiceamerica.com

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