PHD provides updates and awareness to blood lead levels

KELLOGG — Blood lead levels continue to lower, and Panhandle Health District continues to promote awareness, asking for families recreating in those areas to take the necessary precautions to reduce lead exposure.

Basin Environmental Improvement Project Commission (BEIPC) recently had its quarterly meeting at Panhandle Health District (PHD) in Kellogg. During the meeting, Mary Rehnborg, program manager of the Institutional Controls Program of PHD gave a presentation and explanation on preventing lead exposure and awareness in specific areas.

“Essentially what we are finding is that overall in this area, the blood lead averages are continuing to remain low,” explained Rehnborg in an interview with the News-Press. “But when we do see an elevated level, we are typically tying that back to where the family had been recreating. Whether in the South Fork, or the Lower Coeur d’Alene River Lower Basin.”

Rehnborg explained that a lot more people have been recreating in the lower basin, and more exposure is being tracked to that area.

“A lot more people have been recreating in the lower basin, by the chain lakes. The main Coeur d’Alene River channel is gaining popularity.”

Other elevated levels are industrial related, with people working at the mines and bringing materials back home with them on their clothing, and work shoes, and then bringing those particles into the house.

“We want there to be an awareness of that. Sometimes we identify that the levels are coming from lead-based paints, antique furniture and older toys,” Rehnborg said. “Our main point is to encourage everybody that has children to participate in the testing. So if we identify a high lead level, we can offer an at home consultation and find where those sources of exposure are coming from.”

PHD is not telling locals to never recreate in those areas again, but to have an awareness and take the necessary steps to lessen exposure.

“You can still go to these places, you just have to be aware of the exposure. Make sure you aren’t bringing it into your home, shake off your towels, shake off your shoes. You can do little things before getting back into the car and taking the contaminants into your home.”

Lead exposure often occurs with no obvious systems, and a blood lead test is the best tool for identifying exposure and health risks. Annual blood lead surveys are a public health service offered by the state of Idaho through PHD, and have done Bunker Hill Site box testing since 1974/1985 and the basin since 1996. Each summer, PHD’s Kellogg office offers a week of free testing for anyone that lives, works or recreates within the Bunker Hill Superfund site, plus a $40 incentive for testing children ages 6 months to 6 years old. Anyone living in the area can come in any time of year to be tested for free as well.

Results from the August 2021 blood lead screening event showed the average lead level in children six months to six years living within the Bunker Hill Box as 1.5 (µg/dL). The average lead level in children ages 0-6 living within the Coeur d’Alene Basin as 1.9 (µg/dL). The average level of all participants 0-6 showed an average level of 3.4 (µg/dL) with 44 participants using capillary collection and 1.7 (µg/dL) with 57 participants using venous collection. Average level of all participants 7 years or older through capillary testing showed an average of ≤3.3 (µg/dL) with capillary testing with 21 participants and an average of 1.7 (µg/dL) with venous collection with 21 participants.

Young children and pregnant mothers are at the most significant risk of exposure. However, it is easy to reduce exposure by following these safety tips after recreating at or near the Coeur d’Alene River Basin.

• Wash your hands and face with clean water or wipes before eating or drinking.

• Wash toys, bottles and pacifiers if they come into contact with soil, sand or dust.

• When recreating, remove dirt from clothes, toys, pets, cars, boats and camping equipment before you leave. Wash all items when you return home.

• Drink, cook and wash with bottled water or water from home. Do not use river water.

• Eat at a table or on a clean blanket, not bare ground.

• Follow fish consumption advisories, especially for pregnant mothers and children. Find current advisories at: Fishadvisory.dhw.idaho.gov

• Play in grassy areas and avoid loose soil, sand, dust and muddy areas.

Although results continue to improve year to year, Panhandle Health District will continue to educate and monitor blood lead levels. According to the CDC, health effects associated with lead are the same whether it enters the body through breathing or swallowing. Lead can affect almost every organ and system in the body, especially the nervous system. No safe level of lead exposure has been identified. Lead is especially dangerous for young children, whose bodies are still developing. Lead poisoning even at high levels often shows no symptoms, a simple blood lead test is the only way to know if you have been exposed.

The fundamental purpose of the ICP is to protect the public health and assist local land transactions within the Superfund site. To learn more visit www.panhandlehealthdistrict.org/institutional-controls-program/