testing for lead

16 years ago

hi all. i have never done any soil testing in my garden and was wondering what the best method would be. i am particularly concerned about lead levels. i live in nyc and have a backyard i want to grow vegetables in. someone told me that if i use someone like cornell cooperative extension to test my sol that i won't be able to understand the results they send me back...that they would be too techmical and scientific. should i use a home test kit instead? are they reliable? any advice appreciated...thanks.

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Comments (4)

joepyeweed
16 years ago
You could ask your local health department for advice on where to get lead test done.
bob64
16 years ago
Don't know but Check out: http://pubadvocate.nyc.gov/services/lead_information.html

In NYC you can call 311 for a large variety of City agency info.

I am also attaching the link for NYC Dept. of Health.

I have read somewhere that lead seems to be worse near the bridges.

Here is a link that might be useful: NYC Dept. of Health
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They do not need to test for lead if they assume it’s lead. DI’d you ask them about your concerns? I’d say there reputation proceeds themselves if they were to overlook this . Regardless of who does the work I would not trust most contractors to a thorough job of cleaning up afterwards. I would reclean everything they did regardless and focus on window wells, window sills and floors. I would also inspect the exterior for visible paint chips. I emphasize this because of the age of your children and I know from person experience. In general houses from 1959 have lower levels of lead in the paint then from earlier eras, often they will have lead levels that would not classify them according to HUD standard to be classified as lead. Windows from this era typically crest much less debris from ones of earlier eras. If was me I would personally come in behind any contractor and reclean everything again. I would also consider not having my kids there while they are doing the work, but would like to see there precautions taken while doing the work. If these are double hungs on aluminum tracks and they are doing inserts they really don’t generate much debris , at least when I remove them.
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bania, I'd worry more about the ground in your front yard than the paint on your trim. since 1923 to the mid 1980's every gallon of gas burned emitted 1.1 grams of lead, and most of it settled in your front yard. Old inner city neighborhoods are the most contaminated areas which produced many brain damaged kids who played in that dirt. It just sits there in the top couple of inches waiting to be eaten by kids or kicked up and inhaled. I'd guess all the lead I've eaten or inhaled knocked down my IQ at least 10 points but I'm still smart enough to know lead paint can be removed, just don't eat or inhale it. It's something which can be taken care of and easier than the dirt in your yard. You can't get around lead and is even in the milk you drink, cows consume lead and pass it on. Your world isn't perfect but it's a heck of lot cleaner than the world my generation had to grow up in. Trucks driving down the streets fogging DDT for mosquitos with every kid in the neighborhood running behind them, how sweet it was. So does your old house have the original copper water pipes? 99.99999999% chance the solder used in those pipes contain lead. I shouldn't be like this but you need to know, and to be thankful your world is much safer than mine was, ever eaten mercury contaminated fish or crawled around in an attics full of asbestos? I have but there was no around at the time to warn me.
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jimla
16 years ago
You can try Cornell or the "Health Department" but to get the answer you want, collect a sample yourself and send it to a commercial environmental testing laboratory. Most college soil testing programs are aimed at nutrient analysis. Most health department testing programs are for lead in blood attributable to lead paint. Lead in the environment like water, air or your backyard soil is the domain of your State's environmental agency NYDEC.

I looked at the DEC website to find what lead soil concentration they deem acceptable for the protection of human health in a residential setting like your yard. They don't have one, that I could find. NY clean ups are to background lead conditions. Not much help to you in an urban setting.

However the NJ DEP and the PA DEP residential lead direct contact standards are 400 mg/kg and 500 mg/kg,respectively. Mg/kg are also known as part per million (ppm).

There are commercial labs both local and national that you can find in a web search. I use a few in NJ. For about $100-$150 you can get the 8 RCRA (haz waste) heavy metals including arsenic, barium, cadmium, chromium, lead, selenium, silver and mercury. The lab may also be able to do just lead for maybe $25-$50. They can mail you a sample jar for the sample. Or you can buy a large plastic spoon and bowl/bucket at the dollar store, collect a portion of soil from several yard locations, mix the soil in the bucket then take enough soil from the composite mix to fill a clean glass mason jelly jar (or even a ziploc plastic sandwich bag. Send it to the lab and in about 2-3 weeks you should get the results. Some labs will take credit cards.

Good luck but don't be surprised by what you find particulary in a dense urban setting. High lead around a bridge is likely old lead paint residue both from weathering as well as sand blast residue prior to painting. Soil concentrations are only part of the complete risk picture. If the concentration is higher than YOU like, not just what the DEP/DEC standard is, then take whatever steps YOU feel are necessary to give you peace of mind about your backyard garden and its crop.
jgoldber13_hotmail_com
16 years ago
The Penn State Agricultural Analytical Services Laboratory does what they call a "Total Sorbed Metals Test" for $55 (in addition to the $9 standard fertility test).

I just got my results back this week for my backyard in Brooklyn, and now I have some research to do about the 334.35 mg/kg lead. Do I plant vegetables?

Here is a link that might be useful: Penn State Agricultural Analytical Services Laboratory

testing for lead

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