[Enesta Jones] 
Hello, I'm Enesta Jones of 
EPA's Office of Public Affairs.
Welcome to Green Scene, 
an environmental podcast
you can take 
with you.
Two of the most common sources 
of lead poisoning are from
exposure to deteriorating 
lead-based paint and to
lead dust generate from 
renovation and repair
activities in older 
homes and buildings.
In today's economy many people 
are deciding to do their own
projects to save money, 
including renovating
their home.
EPA wants to make sure that if 
you choose to go that route,
you're not putting your family 
at risk of lead poisoning.
To tell us more about how 
you can do it yourself and
protect your family is 
Wendy Cleland-Hamnett,
the acting office director for 
EPA's Office of Pollution
Prevention and Toxics.
Wendy, welcome
to the show.
[Wendy Cleland-Hamnett] 
Thank you, Enesta.
[Enesta Jones] 
So, Wendy, why is it important 
for people, especially parents,
to be concerned about exposure 
to lead in paint?
[Wendy Cleland-Hamnett] 
Lead is very toxic, and infants 
and young children are more
likely to be exposed to lead in 
dust because young children
crawl around on the floor, 
they put their hands in
their mouths, they put their 
toys and other objects
in their mouths that are likely 
to have dust on them.
Children are also very 
susceptible to the toxic
effects of lead.
Because their bodies are 
growing and developing,
they absorb more 
of the lead.
And even low doses of lead 
can cause effects like
behavioral problems and 
learning problems.
And high levels of lead 
in children can result
in very serious problems like 
seizures or even death.
So it's very important that we 
protect children from exposure
to lead in dust.
The good news is that we 
have made great strides
in doing that.
Back in 1978, 30 years ago, 
the CDC estimated that there
were about 3 million children in 
the U.S. who had high blood lead
levels, and in 2002 the CDC 
reported that that number
had been reduced by 90 percent 
to about 300,000 children,
and recently they think that 
number has gone even lower.
But we still have a 
lot of work to do.
[Enesta Jones] 
Last year the agency 
issued a final rule:
Aim to prevent 
lead poisoning.
Can you tell us more about this 
rule and how it's strengthened
public health
protection?
[Wendy Cleland-Hamnett] 
I'd be happy 
to do that.
The rule requires that 
contractors and other
construction professionals who 
are doing work in homes that
were built before 1978, 
or in buildings where
young children are likely 
to spend a lot of time,
like daycare centers and 
preschools and kindergartens,
that the contractors doing work 
there, where they might disturb
lead-based paint, use a set 
of actually very simple but
effective lead-safe work 
practices that reduce the
amount of lead dust that's 
generated and also keep
children from being 
exposed to it.
And that rule goes into 
effect in April 2010.
[Enesta Jones] 
You mentioned the rule is for 
contractors and it takes effect
next year.
What about do-it-yourselfers, 
how can they protect themselves
and their
families?
[Wendy Cleland-Hamnett] 
That's a very 
important question.
Before I go into that I'd just 
like to mention that families
who are considering hiring 
contractors to do work
in their home talk to the 
prospective contractors
about using lead-safe work 
practices and make sure that
their contractors
will do that.
But for parents or other people 
who decide they want to do work
in their homes themselves, 
there are actually three
simple steps they can take 
to protect themselves and
their families.
The first is to contain the 
work area, so any lead dust
that's generated doesn't get 
into other parts of the home.
And you can do that by putting 
plastic up to contain the area.
We'd encourage people, if they 
can remove furniture and drapes
and things from the work area, 
to do that before they start
the work so they don't have to 
worry about lead dust getting
in there, and any furniture 
they can't remove,
floors and so forth, 
they cover with heavy duty
plastic and tape it up 
so when the job's done,
they can fold up that plastic 
and remove it from their house.
They should also make sure to 
keep children and pets and
pregnant women out of the area 
while the work's being done.
We have some caution tape here 
to make sure that family
members and visitors know not 
to go into the work area.
The second step they can do is, 
while they're doing work,
try to minimize the amount 
of dust that's generated.
So, if they're using a sander 
or a grinder, try to use one
that has a HEPA attachment 
that will suck up the dust
while it's being
generated.
The third step is to clean the 
area thoroughly before they
take down the plastic and let 
family members into the area.
Wet mop, use a disposable mop, 
because you don't want to reuse
a mop that might have 
lead dust on it.
Use lots of rinses to 
wipe down the area.
Use, again, a HEPA-equipped 
vacuum with a HEPA filter
on it to clean carpets and other 
surfaces so you get up as much
of the dust
as possible.
[Enesta Jones] 
Wendy, you mentioned some of 
the cleaning materials that
do-it-yourselfers should have 
on hand before they start a
renovation project.
Are there
any others?
[Wendy Cleland-Hamnett] 
Well, certainly the people 
who are doing the work
should wear a disposable 
respirator that you can
buy at your hardware store 
or similar sorts of stores;
cleaning fluid, the 
misting bottle.
This is one way to sort of keep 
the dust down while you're doing
the job, to kind of keep areas 
wet so you don't have dust
getting into 
the air.
I mentioned heavy duty 
plastic and tape.
When you're closing off the area 
it's important to tape over the
heating and air conditioning 
vents so you're not spreading
dust through the rest 
of the home that way.
It's good to have either little 
disposable booties that you can
put over your shoes, or a way 
to clean your shoes off so
if you're doing work and going 
in and out of the area,
you're not tracking dust into 
other parts of the house.
[Enesta Jones] 
What other specific things 
should a do-it-yourselfer do
to prepare a work area before 
they start a renovation?
[Wendy Cleland-Hamnett] 
I think it's important to 
minimize the going in and out
of the work area, to bring all 
of your tools and equipment
into the work area before 
you start the work.
I think protective equipment 
for the person doing the work,
I mentioned the
respirator.
There's just sort of a 
disposable suit you can
put on if you want to keep the 
lead dust off of your clothes;
a hat.
Just try to think ahead of all 
the things that you might need
and have them in the room with 
you when you start the work.
[Enesta Jones] 
I hear that wet wiping 
is important, too.
Just how important is it in 
keeping the area clean?
[Wendy Cleland-Hamnett] 
Very, very important.
Wet wiping's probably the best 
way to keep the dust down
and to make sure that the 
dust is gone before you
let family members 
back into the area.
So, you know, having your bucket 
and water and your mop,
your spray bottle, and all of 
that, and using it frequently
as you're doing the work will 
help keep the dust down.
It's important for the person 
doing the work, too,
so they're not
exposed to it.
[Enesta Jones] 
That's why the gloves 
are important.
[Wendy Cleland-Hamnett] 
Gloves, hat, something to 
cover up your clothing.
[Enesta Jones] 
EPA and the Centers for Disease 
Control are clearly doing a lot
to prevent lead 
poisonings.
If a parent, however, feels that 
their child may have been
exposed, is there something 
that they should do to get
them checked?
[Wendy Cleland-Hamnett] 
Yes, if they believe they or 
their children have been
exposed, they should contact 
their family doctor.
The doctor can do a very simple 
blood test to determine if they
or their child have an elevated 
level of lead in their blood.
[Enesta Jones] 
Thank you for being 
here today, Wendy.
[Wendy Cleland-Hamnett] 
Well, thank you very much.
I'm happy to 
be here.
[Enesta Jones] 
This is all important 
information that will
help do-it-yourselfers protect 
themselves and their families
from lead poisoning.
And for more information on 
EPA's lead poisoning prevention
program or to obtain 
copies of brochures,
go to www.epa.gov/lead, 
or call 1-800-424-LEAD.
See you next time 
on Green Scene.