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EPA Lead Program

Grant Fact Sheet

Lead-Free Philly
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

EPA has selected the National Nursing
Centers Consortium (NNCC) in Philadelphia,
PA for a Targeted Lead Grant.

Lead poisoning in Philadelphia remains one of
the most dangerous environmental threats to
children, despite the fact that it is completely
preventable. Philadelphia's numerous young
children in low-income families and in old,
poorly maintained housing stock creates ideal
conditions for lead poisoning. Low-income
residents occupy nearly 85% of the dwelling
units built before 1950. Although about 21,000
children are born in Philadelphia each year,
only 2,000 caregivers of newborns receive lead
prevention outreach per year. According to a
study conducted by the local Childhood Lead
Poisoning Prevention Program, between 15 and
25% of Philadelphia children do not receive
basic screening for lead. In some at-risk
communities where linguistic and cultural
barriers deter participation in available
programs, services are perceived as scarce
and unavailable.

EPA's Targeted Lead Grants

EPA's Targeted Lead Grant Program funds
projects in areas with high incidences of
children with elevated blood-lead levels in
vulnerable populations. In 2007 the Agency
awarded more than $5.2 Million in grants
under this ambitious program. These
targeted grants are intended to address
immediate needs of the communities in
which they are awarded, and will also
highlight lead poison prevention strategies
that can be used in similar communities
across the country.

EPA's lead program is playing a major role
in meeting the federal goal of eliminating
childhood lead poisoning as a major public
health concern by 2010, and the projects
supported by these grant funds are an
important part of this ongoing effort.
According to the Centers for Disease
Control in 1978 there were 13.5 million
children in the US with elevated blood lead
levels. By 2002, that number had dropped
to 310,000.

For more information about EPA's Lead
Program, visit www.epa.gov/lead or call
the National Lead Information Center at
1-800-424-LEAD.

The EPA award will address these needs as follows:

•	Through the development of a referral database, NNCC will implement a referral and referral
follow-up strategy for screening the hardest-to-access populations in Philadelphia.

•	NNCC will provide culturally-relevant lead outreach education to high risk communities.

The grant will fund outreach that uses specific venues, such as community service providers, with the
potential to reach high-risk populations.

2007 Targeted Lead Grant Program

Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics

www.epa.gov/lead

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