New report details lead poisoning issue in Allegheny County

The Allegheny County Health Department recently released new numbers on how many kids in the county have lead poisoning. The results show 10 communities where 10-21% of the kids tested positive for lead, which can cause developmental delays.

The good news: Many families can get free lead testing and remediation.

That’s what Stephanie Watson of Westwood got at the home she’s renting. Paint is peeling off the exterior windows and other parts of the home that was built in the 1920’s, and a lead inspection found lead in the paint — something common in paint before 1978.

That’s a big concern for Watson, whose daughter, Monique, has asthma, allergies and cystic fibrosis, and whose son, Mykel, has autism.

”He likes to touch things, a lot as a sensory thing,” Watson says. “So he goes around and he picks paint off things and sometimes he’ll rub it really bad. Like if he’s sitting in the chair, he’ll take his hand and he’ll scratch it.”

Watson asked for the home she’s renting to be tested as part of the Allegheny Lead Safe Homes program: “My mind was going a million ways of what can happen and what can’t happen, and things like that,” she said. “So I just wanted to do what I could.”

The Allegheny County Health Department’s new assessment of lead levels is based on mandatory lead testing of kids at age 1 and 2. It shows about 3.1% of children under age 6 had lead poisoning in 2023.

But certain zip codes have extremely high levels. These include Wilmerding, with 21.7% of kids testing positive for lead in their blood, 21% in Neville Island, and 15% in Corliss, Sheraden, Braddock and Rankin.

Several more communities have between 10% and 14% of kids with elevated lead levels. These include Bunola, Pitcairn, Monroeville, McKeesport, Duquesne and East McKeesport, as well as Mt. Oliver and St. Clair in Pittsburgh.

“We have old schools. We have old homes, and as a result, we know that there is exposure to lead in those spaces,” said Michele Naccarati-Chapkis, executive director of Women for a Healthy Environment. “Our goal is to ensure that those spaces are free of lead and that children aren’t harmed, because we know that there’s no safe amount of lead exposure.”

In fact, 60% of housing units in Pittsburgh were built before 1950, and 39% in Allegheny County were built that early, when lead was common in paint.

Lead inspectors use a device to test for lead down to the original layers. Even lead on exterior paint can be tracked inside and ingested by kids who are on the floor or crawling. The inspectors also take dust samples to test for lead that can be in the air.

Billie Jo Oldroyd, owner of BEcon Lead Paint Inspection Services, explains that “it could possibly be coming from friction surfaces – doors, windows, things that scrape, smack, steps, things like that are walked upon. So that can cause lead dust through the house, which is a big concern with children under six because of the hand-mouth activity.”

The testing is free through the Allegheny Lead Safe program which is for properties built before 1978, for families with kids under age 6 in or visiting the home, and who meet certain income qualifications.

Watson qualified because she rents the home in Westwood, and her landlord agreed to the testing. Now that lead was detected in the home she’s renting, the remediation will also be free under the program. It will pay for her and her kids to stay at a hotel while the repairs are made — likely new windows and sashes among other changes.

“I’m so ecstatic. It’s a blessing,” she says. “Single mothers and single fathers, you know, we need these programs to keep up, and it’s important to us as parents to take care of our children.”

When Stephanie’s brother was just 4, she says he tested positive for extremely high lead levels and experienced developmental delays. Lead was discovered in a sand pit in their backyard where he played, so she’s especially conscientious about lead.

If you want to see if you qualify for the free lead testing, you can visit Lead Safe Allegheny, Lead Safe Westmoreland County or Lead & Healthy Homes-Lawrence County.