Lead levels raise health concerns

15 May 2003

A new University of New South Wales study has found lead levels in residential homes in Sydney's inner west to be almost three times higher than the rest of the metropolitan area, raising questions about the health of children in the area.

The study, by Dr Gautam Chattopadhay and Kevin Chi-Pei Lin of the UNSW School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, measured the concentration of heavy metals in the dust of 82 households.

It found that lead (Pb) levels in the inner-west homes have changed little over the last decade. But the ambient air lead concentration in Sydney has declined by more than 70 per cent due to the phasing out of leaded petrol. In fact, Sydney is now much cleaner than many other comparable western cities.

Dr Chattopadhyay says that given children's blood lead levels are highly correlated with household dust, there is need for a more detailed environmental study to determine the causes of the problem and possible solution.

"We believe there is a real need to conduct a new epidemiological study to measure blood lead levels for children in this area," he says. "Lower IQ and even behavioural problems are significantly correlated with increased blood lead levels."

In a separate study conducted a decade ago, 51 per cent of children in the inner-western area had Pb blood levels higher than the recommended National Health and Medical Research Council guidelines.

Dr Chattopadhyay says the indoor environment, which has been well-researched in Europe and the United States, remains largely unexplored in this country.

The results of the study, co-authored with Dr Andrew Feitz of the UNSW Centre for Water and Waste Technology, are due to be published in an upcoming issue of the journal Environmental Research.

Media contact: Mary O'Malley, UNSW Media Unit, ph 9385 2873, mob 0438 881 124 or Dr Gautam Chattopadhyay, ph 9385 5700, mob 0414 676 245.