New Michigan program will cover half the cost of lead abatement for eligible families
The new statewide Lead Poisoning Prevention Fund in Michigan aims to make lead abatement more affordable by covering half the cost for eligible households and facilitating access to low-interest loans for the remaining cost
New ‘Get the Lead Out Detroit Coalition’ holds first outreach event in Southwest Detroit
Mareesha Walker has a message for Detroit’s parents: lead poisoning is a big risk for city kids, and knowledge is power. Walker, a health educator with Detroit’s Health Department, was in attendance at the Lead Safe Kids Resource Fair on Sat., Feb. 11, at the Ford Resource and Engagement Center in Southwest Detroit. She is…
Lead paint is a major threat to kids. Old Detroit homes are full of it, but the city keeps selling them
The Detroit Land Bank sells thousands of cheap homes without disclosing the potential hazards of lead-based paint. Remediation has been slow. LaShawna Anthony needed to move into a new home in the summer of 2020 to get herself and her newborn out of a toxic romantic relationship. Instead of renting a new house, she bought…
Bilingual contractor training program aims to boost city’s lead abatement work in Southwest Detroit
Growing up in Southwest Detroit, Sonia Alvarado learned how to fix houses from her parents, both union carpenters. “There were always projects going on. I know a lot about construction and the trades because of both of my parents,” she said. “It was very much doing all the work, learning how to do stuff.” Later…
Bills requiring universal lead testing for Michigan children passes out of House committee; fall vote expected
The bills come on top of new guidance lowering the threshold for what’s considered an elevated blood lead level in the state Two bills that would change lead testing requirements for children have passed out of the state House Health Policy Committee and will likely come up for a vote during the fall legislative session. …
Michigan families navigate scarce resources when seeking help for lead-poisoned kids
When Detroit resident TaNiccia Henry’s grandson Lloyd Toliver was 4, his hair stopped growing and his feet turned black. Henry took her grandson to the doctor, and she was shocked by what she learned: her grandson had lead poisoning. “At the end of the day, I’m going to say God’s honest truth: I didn’t know…
Sweeping set of bills tackling child lead exposure discussed in Michigan House
A sweeping set of bipartisan bills aiming to reduce childhood lead exposure are making their way through the Michigan Legislature, with provisions that would strengthen intervention and monitoring across state programs, the medical profession and the real estate industry. The state House Committee on Health Policy discussed a package of bills to reform Michigan’s lead…
OPINION: All Michigan children should be tested for lead at one and two years of age
Thousands of Michigan children are lead poisoned each year and nothing is done about it… because no one even knows it’s happening. Not even their families know because their children haven’t been tested — and families don’t even know that they should be tested. In 2019, more than 4,000 children in Michigan were identified as…
Michigan’s rules for testing lead in drinking water may give ‘false sense of confidence’ in water quality
This story co-published with HuffPost. New lead rules Michigan instated in 2018 following the Flint water crisis were heralded as the nation’s strictest, but lax enforcement and flaws in testing protocols are making the state’s drinking water appear safer than it likely is, a Planet Detroit and HuffPost analysis of state records finds. Public health…
Detroit proposes changes to city’s lead enforcement code; activists sound alarm
Proposed changes to the City of Detroit’s rental ordinance governing lead paint inspections were approved by the Public Health & Safety Standing Committee Monday and will head to City Council for final approval next week. Among the most controversial are loosened requirements on how often the city will require landlords to perform lead risk assessments in…
Is housing an environmental justice issue? In Detroit, yes.
This story is published in partnership with Outlier Media’s The Dig. Nora Rodriguez has lived three places in her life, all in Southwest Detroit. Nearly everything she needs is nearby—her job, friends and family, grocery stores, restaurants and more. But every house is also close to factories or highways. Where she lives now, on Dragoon…
Meet Detroit’s parent lead activists
TaNiccia Henry moved into her grandparents’ home to care for her ailing grandfather about twenty years ago. The home, located in Detroit’s historic Herman Kiefer neighborhood, is more than a century old. In 2013, her grandson Lloyd was born and moved into the home with Henry, who became his primary caregiver. It took a few…
Fewer kids were tested for lead poisoning amid the pandemic. This pop-up clinic aims to change that trend.
When Alashna Moore took her 4-year-old son Aishani to sign up for preschool at United Children and Family Head Start on Harper in early August, she took advantage of an unexpected opportunity to test him for lead poisoning. A mobile health unit stationed in the parking lot behind the school building was staffed with health…
Highland Park’s long path to lead-free water
The city got an encouraging result in its last round of testing, but it could be years before it’s in the clear To understand the challenges of testing for lead in water, look no further than Highland Park. At the end of 2019, the impoverished city contained entirely within Detroit got back some alarming test…
Michigan is testing water for lead under the nation’s most stringent rules. It may not like what it finds.
Flint is the most notable example. But we might soon find out about many more. Aside from a few infamous cases—like Flint, Chicago, and Washington, D.C.—public officials across the United States have continually downplayed the pervasiveness of lead contamination in water. But if preliminary evidence holds up, a new Michigan rule for testing lead will…
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