On Wed July 13 from 3:00 to 6:00 PM, the Salina-Saline County Health Department will offer FREE blood lead testing for persons and their family members, who live or work near the “nonattainment area” for lead air quality.
Testing is available for adults and children. The usual cost for blood lead level testing is $10, and will be waived.
Testing will be done at the Salina-Saline County Health Department Clinic, located at 125 W. Elm, in Salina.
The nonattainment area designated by the Kansas Department of Health & Environment and the Environmental Health Agency for lead emissions is bordered on the north by Schilling Road, east near Ohio Street, south by Berg Road (near Waterwell Road), and west by Ninth Street. The entire area is less than a square mile.
Most people with high blood lead levels have no symptoms. Lead affects children and pregnant women more seriously than adults. Some of the more common health effects of lead exposure in children include: irritability, anemia, loss of appetite, hyperactivity and learning disabilities. Common health effects of lead exposure in adults include: fatigue, nausea, anemia, reproductive problems and impaired concentration. High levels of lead in the blood can be serious, even life-threatening.
For questions about free blood lead level testing, call the Salina-Saline County Health Department Clinic at 826-6602.
BACKGROUND STORY:
Topeka—On June 16, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) announced its recommendation to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that an area of Saline County surrounding the Exide Technologies battery plant be designated as non-attainment for the EPA lead air quality standard.
In 2008, the EPA set more stringent values for the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for lead, bringing the old standard of 1.5 micrograms per cubic meter to a standard of 0.15 micrograms per cubic meter. Air monitoring data are evaluated over a three-month period.
To verify that Kansas facilities are complying with this current standard, KDHE is required to perform air monitoring near facilities emitting more than one-half ton of lead per year. Exide Technologies, located at 413 E. Berg Road, is the only facility in Kansas that meets the air monitoring threshold. KDHE and Exide have cooperatively worked to determine the geographical extent around the facility where the lead NAAQS is not being met. Air pollution dispersion modeling was conducted to augment results of the sampling data.
KDHE installed an air-monitoring site approximately 300 feet north of Exide’s property line. The monitoring site began operation in February 2010. The quarterly monitoring data from the Salina monitors have violated the 2008 NAAQS on two occasions.
“These violations started in motion a process where KDHE recommends a certain geographic area be designated as not meeting the national air quality standard for lead. This area is referred to as being in non-attainment for the lead air quality standard,” said John Mitchell, KDHE director of environment. “KDHE and Exide will continue working together to make improvements that reduce lead emissions for this area.”
Exide Technologies manufactures lead-acid batteries for automotive, marine, and lawn and garden uses. The facility melts lead as part of the battery manufacturing process. The proposed designated nonattainment area includes the Exide facility, and is bounded on the north by Schilling Road, on the west by 9th Street, on the south by Water Well Road, and ¼ mile west of Ohio Street on the east side of the plant. The entire area is less than a square mile.