October 2015
Dear residents of Maywood, Boyle Heights, and East Los Angeles,
On August 21, 2015, the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) announced that anywhere between 5,000 and 10,000 homes may be contaminated with lead in the neighborhoods near Exide Technologies in Vernon, California. If you live in Maywood, East Los Angeles, or Boyle Heights, just north and south of the facility, your home may be at risk.
Exide Technologies was a lead-acid battery recycling facility that operated on a temporary permit for over 30 years. The facility was allowed to remain open even though it was cited over a dozen times for emitting lead and other hazardous chemicals to the air, water, and soil of nearby communities.
Although Exide was permanently close in March 2015, there is still a lot of mistrust in DTSC from the community. Therefore, a community advisory group at DTSC was created in May to ensure that Exide is held accountable for the cleanup of the area. This group includes Mark Lopez, the executive director of East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice, a representative from the Los Angeles Public Health Department, and a technical advisor that advises on the appropriate measures needed for appropriate closure of the facility. Although it is hard to place trust in an agency that has failed to protect the public for over 30 years, our community is finally being heard and we should use the resources we have been fighting for, for so long.
Although lead poisoning has devastating health consequences, it often goes undiagnosed. This is a major concern in Los Angeles, where over one-third of the children in California under the age of six tested positive for elevated lead levels in 2010. Lead is a dangerous chemical has no safe level of exposure and has been proven to impair brain development in children.
According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the allowable limit of lead in bare soil is 400 parts per million (ppm). Testing has confirmed that 38 properties have lead levels over 1,000 ppm and require immediate clean-up since there are children and pregnant women living in these residential properties.
Here are the four most important steps you can take now to make sure you and your family are protected from Exide’s lead contamination.
- If you live in Maywood, East Los Angeles, or Boyle Heights, it is important to get your property tested.
DTSC has recently secured $7 million to begin the immediate clean-up of the properties contaminated with lead in the expanded testing are near Exide. You do not need to pay for testing, clean-up, or relocation costs. Even if you are not the owner of the property, you have the right to receive soil testing if your home is within the expanded testing areas.
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If you are the owner of the property, you must contact Marina Perez, Public Participation specialist at DTSC, to set up an appointment toll free at (844) 225-3887 or by email at marina.perez@dtsc.ca.gov. She is bilingual and working directly with community members in the areas affected by Exide’s contamination.
If you are a tenant, you must contact your landlord and ask them to contact Marina Perez.
Once you call her, she will schedule a home visit to conduct soil testing. The results of the sampling will determine whether your home requires cleanup and if so, the extent of such cleanup. Homes with lead levels over 1000 ppm and homes where children and pregnant women are present and with lead levels over 400 ppm will be prioritize for clean-up. A work notice detailing the plan for cleanup will be distributed at least a week before soil removal occurs and entire process should not take more than two weeks.
Relocation and meals cost during this time will be covered by Exide and additional accommodations can be made for public transportation users. It is therefore, important to take advantage of this opportunity to make sure you home is lead-free.
- Get a free blood test from the Los Angeles Department of Public Health for you and your children.
Since it is difficult to tell if you or your child are lead poisoned, blood testing can show whether the lead levels are above the CDC’s acceptable limits. In the case that someone in your family has over 5 micrograms of lead per deciliter of blood, you can obtain medical attention to reduce health effects of lead exposure.
You can sign up for blood lead testing at bloodleadtesting.com or by calling toll-free at 1 (844) 888-2290.
Once you sign up for a free blood lead screening, a lab form will be mailed to you. You will be asked to provide your contact information and take the completed form to your nearest Quest Diagnosis Laboratory, which may be in Downey or Boyle Heights. Although it might be difficult to take a large chunk of your time to get a blood test, it could help uncover the cause of any current symptoms your child might be suffering and prevent future exposure.
If you are unable to get a blood test, you can also visit your local community health center and be seen by a physician free of charge. At any of these centers, you can also ask for other resources and information available to prevent lead exposure.
- Get connected on Facebook!
Like the Facebook pages of local environmental justice organizations, like Communities for a Better Environment and East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice to get the latest updates on Exide.
All the DTSC and AQMD meetings have bilingual support and the organizations’ meetings are also accessible to Spanish-speakers. Check out this website to find out when the next community meeting will be.
- But most importantly, share this information with your neighbors and other community members. Let them know what is happening in our community.
Although Exide is finally shut down, there is still more we can do to protect ourselves and our families. This is a step we can take towards addressing environmental injustice in our community and ensuring that our homes are free of Exide’s lead contamination.
Sincerely,
Idalmis
A concerned resident of Southeast Los Angeles