The US Supreme Court declined to review a California Supreme Court decision holding multiple lead paint manufacturers responsible for cleanup costs amounting to over $400 million. The longstanding litigation was brought under the theory that lead paint contamination was a public nuisance. Lead paint has been known for decades as toxic.
Showing posts with label lead paint. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lead paint. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 17, 2018
Friday, December 29, 2017
2018 May Bring Reduced Lead Exposure in the Workplace
Lead paint exposure and resulting illness in the workplace may be reduced following a Federal 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision this week. The Court mandated that the United States Environmental Protection Agency act upon a rulemaking petition concerning dust-levels and lead-paint standards.
Friday, November 17, 2017
California Court of Appeal Upholds Landmark Ruling Affirming $1.5 Billion Judgment Ordering the Removal of Lead Paint From Pre-1951 Homes
After a seventeen year legal battle that broke new legal ground, California’s Sixth District Court of Appeal unanimously upheld a lower court decision ordering three lead paint manufacturers to clean up lead paint inside older homes in the County of Santa Clara and nine other California cities and counties. Today’s ruling holds defendants Sherwin-Williams Company, NL Industries, Inc., and ConAgra Grocery Products Company responsible for the public nuisance created by lead paint inside pre-1951 homes.
Wednesday, February 15, 2017
Occupational Exposure to Lead Continues to be a Serious Health Issue
The California Department of Health has reported that the workers' occupational exposure to lead continues to be a serious public health issue.
Friday, April 8, 2016
NJ: The Lead Paint Poisoning Crisis Continues
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| Lead Paint (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
Lead paint for decades has been a problem in New Jersey decaying housing for decades. The consequences have been the lead poisoning of children. Children are particularly vulnerable to the health hazard that results in neurological disorders. Recent attention is again focussed on the issue. Today's post is shared from northjersey.com.
"The state will nearly double its spending to $22 million on lead safety programs for children this year, Governor Christie said Tuesday, amid sustained calls for attention and money to an issue that has for years been largely hidden from public view.
Thursday, March 3, 2016
Property Developer Pleads Guilty To Exposing Workers To Asbestos During Removal Operations
U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr., in Rochester, NY, announced today that Anastasios “Taso” Kolokouris, 32, of Avon, NY, pleaded guilty to violating the Clean Air Act asbestos work practice standards involving asbestos removal and disturbance before Chief U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci. The charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Wednesday, August 12, 2015
Lead: Bringing it Home From Work
NIOSH reports that homes may be contaminated by toxic substances such as lead when employees bring home the contaminates. Bystander exposure occurs when employees bring home toxic substances on their bodies, clothing or other objects. Lead affects the developing nervous system of children, and no safe blood lead level (BLL) in children has been identified:
Monday, July 28, 2014
Attorneys Who Won Landmark Lead Paint Judgment and Cleanup Named Public Justice Trial Lawyer of the Year
The attorneys who successfully fought for lead paint cleanup in People of California v. Atlantic
The 27 attorneys won a $1.15 billion judgment against paint manufacturers last year, successfully arguing that lead paint in homes is a public nuisance that creates a quantifiable risk of harm to children who reside in or visit those homes. Leading the team of attorneys were (in alphabetical order) Mary E. Alexander of Mary Alexander & Associates, P.C. in San Francisco, Joseph W. Cotchett and Nancy L. Fineman of Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy, LLP in Burlingame, Calif., Peter Earle of the Law Office of Peter Earle in Milwaukee, Wis., and Fidelma L. Fitzpatrick of the firm Motley Rice in Providence, R.I. “This is for the children of California,” Mary Alexander said upon accepting the award. Fidelma Fitzpatrick noted that her participation in People of California was the greatest privilege of her professional career. In California, tens of thousands of children each year have blood lead levels that exceed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention threshold. There is virtual unanimity in the medical and scientific community that the primary cause of lead poisoning in children is the lead paint in their homes. It is also widely understood that the only way to prevent lead poisoning is to remove or remediate the paint in a child’s environment before a child gets poisoned. ... |
Monday, April 28, 2014
US EPA Seeks Input About Lead Contamination in Public and Commercial Buildings
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is inviting small businesses to participate as consultants for a Small Business Advocacy Review (SBAR) Panel as the agency considers steps to reduce lead based paint exposure from the renovation, repair, and painting of public and commercial buildings as required by section 402(c)(3) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
The SBAR Panel is being established pursuant to the Regulatory Flexibility Act, and will include representatives from the Small Business Administration (SBA), the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and EPA. The Panel will ask a selected group of Small Entity Representatives (SERs) to provide advice and recommendations on behalf of their company, community, or organization to inform the Panel on impacts of a proposed rule on small entities involved in the renovation, repair, and painting of public and commercial buildings. SER panelists may participate via telephone or webinar, as well as in person.
EPA seeks self-nominations directly from the small businesses, small governments and small organizations that may be subject to the rule requirements to facilitate the selection of SERs. An entity is eligible to be a SER if it will be directly subject to the particular proposed regulation under development and meets one of the SBA’s definitions http://www.sba.gov/content/table-small-business-size-standards
to qualify as a small entity.
EPA encourages the actual owners or operators of small businesses, community officials, and representatives of non-profit organizations to participate in this process. However, a person from a trade association that exclusively or primarily represents potentially regulated small entities may also serve as a SER.
Self-nominations may be submitted through the link below and must be received by May 9, 2014.
To nominate yourself, visit: How can I get Involved: http://www.epa.gov/rfa/lead-pncb.html
The SBAR Panel is being established pursuant to the Regulatory Flexibility Act, and will include representatives from the Small Business Administration (SBA), the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and EPA. The Panel will ask a selected group of Small Entity Representatives (SERs) to provide advice and recommendations on behalf of their company, community, or organization to inform the Panel on impacts of a proposed rule on small entities involved in the renovation, repair, and painting of public and commercial buildings. SER panelists may participate via telephone or webinar, as well as in person.
EPA seeks self-nominations directly from the small businesses, small governments and small organizations that may be subject to the rule requirements to facilitate the selection of SERs. An entity is eligible to be a SER if it will be directly subject to the particular proposed regulation under development and meets one of the SBA’s definitions http://www.sba.gov/content/table-small-business-size-standards
to qualify as a small entity.
EPA encourages the actual owners or operators of small businesses, community officials, and representatives of non-profit organizations to participate in this process. However, a person from a trade association that exclusively or primarily represents potentially regulated small entities may also serve as a SER.
Self-nominations may be submitted through the link below and must be received by May 9, 2014.
To nominate yourself, visit: How can I get Involved: http://www.epa.gov/rfa/lead-pncb.html
….
Jon L. Gelman of Wayne NJ is the author NJ Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson) and co-author of the national treatise, Modern Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson). For over 4 decades the Law Offices of Jon L Gelman 1.973.696.7900 jon@gelmans.com have been representing injured workers and their families who have suffered occupational accidents and illnesses.
Thursday, April 17, 2014
EPA Enforcement Actions Against New England Painting Companies
Several recent settlements ensure that New England businesses performing painting and home renovation work are complying with requirements designed to protect children from exposure to lead-based paint during painting and other renovation activities. The settlements also contain financial penalties which must be paid for alleged violations of EPA’s Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) Rule.
EPA’s RRP Rule is designed to prevent exposure to lead-based paint and/or lead-based paint hazards, especially for children and infants. The rule requires individuals performing renovations for compensation at most pre-1978 housing and child-occupied facilities to be properly trained. There are certification and training requirements for individual renovators and firms performing renovations to ensure that safe work practices are followed during renovations.
“Infants’ and children’s developing bodies are especially vulnerable to the harmful effects of lead exposure, which can include lifelong impacts such as developmental impairment, learning disabilities, impaired hearing, reduced attention span, hyperactivity and behavioral problems,” said Curt Spalding, regional administrator of EPA’s New England office. “The common-sense and easy-to-follow safe work practices found in the RRP rule are designed to help ensure that people are protecting their kids from suffering serious, lifelong health impacts from lead exposure.”
EPA recently reached settlements in the following lead paint RRP cases:
East Coast Pros LLC, Norwalk, Conn. – This company was hired in 2012 to perform renovations at the First Congregational Church on the Green in Norwalk. The church facilities were built before 1978 and included the L’il Critters Preschool facility, with approximately 80 children below the age of 6 enrolled at the time the renovation was being performed. An EPA inspection indicated that the company started renovation work and disturbed more than 20 square feet of exterior painted surfaces without using lead-safe work practices. EPA identified six RRP Rule violations, including: failing to provide the EPA information pamphlet “Renovate Right” to the owner or adult occupants of the L’il Critters Preschool facility, which is a child-occupied facility; failing to provide the EPA information pamphlet “Renovate Right” to the parents/guardians of children at the L’il Critters Preschool facility; not maintaining any records regarding TSCA and RRP rule compliance; failing to have RRP firm certification; failing to ensure that the company’s renovators were RRP-certified; and failing to contain renovation waste. The company has agreed to an expedited settlement of $3,577.
Bill Vizzo Contractors, LLC/Michael’s Painting, Shelton, Conn. – This company will pay a penalty of $2,200 for failing to comply with lead-based paint renovation requirements during renovation work at a residence in Monroe, Conn., in violation of the Toxic Substances Control Act, the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act, and the Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) Rule.
Gerard Therrien, Manchester, N.H. – Gerard Therrien performed painting and renovation work at a single family home in Manchester, N.H. During an inspection of the work, EPA identified RRP Rule violations, including: failing to properly cover the ground at the exterior of the building with plastic sheeting or other disposable impermeable material; failing to properly cover interior surfaces with taped-down plastic sheeting or other impermeable material; failing to contain waste from renovation activities to prevent releases of dust and debris; failing to obtain initial firm certification from EPA; failing to obtain a course completion certificate (proof of certification); failing to post signs clearly defining the work area at the work site. This matter was negotiated prior to filing an administrative action and Mr. Therrien agreed to pay a $2,980 penalty under EPA’s Pilot RRP Penalty Program for Micro-Businesses.
Collegiate Entrepreneurs, Inc., Braintree, Mass. – This corporation that specializes in renovating and painting apartment buildings and residences in Massachusetts and throughout New England paid a $30,000 penalty for alleged violations of the pre-renovation education and record keeping requirements of the Renovation Repair and Painting Rule. Their violations included failing to provide EPA’s lead hazard information pamphlet to customers before undertaking renovation projects in several Mass. communities, and failing to comply with the record-keeping requirements in connection with seven Mass. renovation projects during the summer of 2010.
EPA also recently announced settlements for alleged violations of the lead RRP rule for work to convert the former Frisbee School in Kittery, Maine into a community center. The companies involved were James J. Welch & Co., Inc., of Salem, Mass., hired as the primary contractor for the job, and New Hampshire Plate Glass Corp. of Portsmouth, N.H., which was hired as a subcontractor to install new replacement windows in the building. Under the settlements, JJ Welch will pay a penalty of $3,565, while NH Glass will pay a fine of $10,890.
EPA’s Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) Rule became effective on April 22, 2010 and allows for the assessment of penalties that may reach up to a maximum of $37,500 per violation per day.
Since 2012, EPA has pursued 14 actions in New England to enforce the RRP Rule. Continued enforcement of the lead paint Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule ensures both that children are being protected from avoidable exposure to lead, as well as there being a “level playing field” for contractors following the health-protective work practices in the regulation.
More information:
- Lead paint RRP Rule (http://www.epa.gov/lead/rrp/index.html)
- Why lead is a health hazard (http://www.epa.gov/lead/learn-about-lead.html)
Related Stories:
EPA’s RRP Rule is designed to prevent exposure to lead-based paint and/or lead-based paint hazards, especially for children and infants. The rule requires individuals performing renovations for compensation at most pre-1978 housing and child-occupied facilities to be properly trained. There are certification and training requirements for individual renovators and firms performing renovations to ensure that safe work practices are followed during renovations.
“Infants’ and children’s developing bodies are especially vulnerable to the harmful effects of lead exposure, which can include lifelong impacts such as developmental impairment, learning disabilities, impaired hearing, reduced attention span, hyperactivity and behavioral problems,” said Curt Spalding, regional administrator of EPA’s New England office. “The common-sense and easy-to-follow safe work practices found in the RRP rule are designed to help ensure that people are protecting their kids from suffering serious, lifelong health impacts from lead exposure.”
EPA recently reached settlements in the following lead paint RRP cases:
East Coast Pros LLC, Norwalk, Conn. – This company was hired in 2012 to perform renovations at the First Congregational Church on the Green in Norwalk. The church facilities were built before 1978 and included the L’il Critters Preschool facility, with approximately 80 children below the age of 6 enrolled at the time the renovation was being performed. An EPA inspection indicated that the company started renovation work and disturbed more than 20 square feet of exterior painted surfaces without using lead-safe work practices. EPA identified six RRP Rule violations, including: failing to provide the EPA information pamphlet “Renovate Right” to the owner or adult occupants of the L’il Critters Preschool facility, which is a child-occupied facility; failing to provide the EPA information pamphlet “Renovate Right” to the parents/guardians of children at the L’il Critters Preschool facility; not maintaining any records regarding TSCA and RRP rule compliance; failing to have RRP firm certification; failing to ensure that the company’s renovators were RRP-certified; and failing to contain renovation waste. The company has agreed to an expedited settlement of $3,577.
Bill Vizzo Contractors, LLC/Michael’s Painting, Shelton, Conn. – This company will pay a penalty of $2,200 for failing to comply with lead-based paint renovation requirements during renovation work at a residence in Monroe, Conn., in violation of the Toxic Substances Control Act, the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act, and the Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) Rule.
Gerard Therrien, Manchester, N.H. – Gerard Therrien performed painting and renovation work at a single family home in Manchester, N.H. During an inspection of the work, EPA identified RRP Rule violations, including: failing to properly cover the ground at the exterior of the building with plastic sheeting or other disposable impermeable material; failing to properly cover interior surfaces with taped-down plastic sheeting or other impermeable material; failing to contain waste from renovation activities to prevent releases of dust and debris; failing to obtain initial firm certification from EPA; failing to obtain a course completion certificate (proof of certification); failing to post signs clearly defining the work area at the work site. This matter was negotiated prior to filing an administrative action and Mr. Therrien agreed to pay a $2,980 penalty under EPA’s Pilot RRP Penalty Program for Micro-Businesses.
Collegiate Entrepreneurs, Inc., Braintree, Mass. – This corporation that specializes in renovating and painting apartment buildings and residences in Massachusetts and throughout New England paid a $30,000 penalty for alleged violations of the pre-renovation education and record keeping requirements of the Renovation Repair and Painting Rule. Their violations included failing to provide EPA’s lead hazard information pamphlet to customers before undertaking renovation projects in several Mass. communities, and failing to comply with the record-keeping requirements in connection with seven Mass. renovation projects during the summer of 2010.
EPA also recently announced settlements for alleged violations of the lead RRP rule for work to convert the former Frisbee School in Kittery, Maine into a community center. The companies involved were James J. Welch & Co., Inc., of Salem, Mass., hired as the primary contractor for the job, and New Hampshire Plate Glass Corp. of Portsmouth, N.H., which was hired as a subcontractor to install new replacement windows in the building. Under the settlements, JJ Welch will pay a penalty of $3,565, while NH Glass will pay a fine of $10,890.
EPA’s Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) Rule became effective on April 22, 2010 and allows for the assessment of penalties that may reach up to a maximum of $37,500 per violation per day.
Since 2012, EPA has pursued 14 actions in New England to enforce the RRP Rule. Continued enforcement of the lead paint Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule ensures both that children are being protected from avoidable exposure to lead, as well as there being a “level playing field” for contractors following the health-protective work practices in the regulation.
More information:
- Lead paint RRP Rule (http://www.epa.gov/lead/rrp/index.html)
- Why lead is a health hazard (http://www.epa.gov/lead/learn-about-lead.html)
Related Stories:
Apr 09, 2014
BOSTON – In an effort to improve compliance with laws that protect children from lead paint poisoning, EPA is sending letters to approximately 200 home renovation and painting contractors, property management companies ...
Dec 17, 2013
In an historic ruling, a California Judge, held the lead paint pigment manufacturers liable for the damage they caused children by placing toxic lead pigment into paint. The companies will be held accountable for the ...
Dec 17, 2013
Lead paint manufacturers were held liable for creating a public nuisance. The Court ordered them to pay $1.1 Billion dollars in damages. The claim was prosecuted by a team of lawyers including those from Motley Rice LLC, ...
Dec 26, 2013
She has represented public entities in litigation against the lead paint industry including the multi-billion dollar Rhode Island trial. Fidelma Fitzpatrick is a nationally recognized advocate of children's and women's health issues ...
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Buffalo attorney had key role in lead-paint ruling
Fidelma Fitzpatrick is a seasoned trial attorney with the law firm of Motley Rice LLC. She is exceptionally skilled in both negotiated settlements and complex trial litigation. Fidelma assisted in crafted the historic multi-billion dollar tobacco settlement agreement between the US State Attorney Generals and the tobacco industry. She has represented public entities in litigation against the lead paint industry including the multi-billion dollar Rhode Island trial. Fidelma Fitzpatrick is a nationally recognized advocate of children's and women's health issues. Today's post is shared from the buffalonews.com.
A Buffalo attorney played a key role in a billion-dollar court decision last week in California.
Three lead-paint makers were ordered by Santa Clara Superior Court Judge James P. Kleinberg to create the $1.1 billion fund to protect children against lead paint produced decades earlier, despite knowing it endangered human health, especially for children.
The verdict calls for the companies to put the money in a special health department fund dedicated to lead-poisoning prevention. The municipalities would then draw an allotted amount for use on lead inspections, repairs and removal effecting hundreds of thousands of homes. “From a public health standpoint, the decision is absolutely monumental. The good that this will bring to the children of California cannot be understated. Children today and future generations will be protected from lead poisoning because of it,” Fitzpatrick said. She has worked on the case for the South Carolina-based law firm Motley Rice for the past 13 years. In the bench trial, Kleinberg found Sherwin-Williams Co., NL Industries and ConAgra Grocery Products Co. guilty of creating a public nuisance by manufacturing and selling lead paint long after... |
Sunday, December 22, 2013
Judge Orders Companies to Pay $1.1 Billion for Lead Paint Removal
Video Link: http://tinyurl.com/mwoqs3d On Monday, a judge ordered three paint companies to pay $1.1 billion to remove lead-based paint in California homes in several jurisdictions, including Oakland, San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego, marking the end to a case that took 13 years to litigate. According to the LA Times, Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge James P. Kleinberg ruled that ConAgra, NL Industries and Sherwin-Williams had exposed children to a known poison for decades when they sold lead-based paint for use in homes before it was outlawed in 1977 and created a “public nuisance” by their actions. Public health historians Gerald Markowitz and David Rosner mentioned the trial to Bill earlier this year on Moyers & Company noting that a decision against the companies would mark only the second time in history that the industry has been compelled to pay for clean-up. A similar decision in 2006 in Rhode Island was later overturned by that state’s Supreme Court. Markowitz and Rosner warned that, for young children, there’s no safe level of exposure to this dangerous toxin still lurking in millions of homes across the country. In the California ruling, the judge wrote, “The court is convinced there are thousands of California children in the Jurisdictions whose lives can be improved, if not saved through a lead abatement plan.” The LA Times reports that nearly 5 million homes in the 10 cities and counties that joined the lawsuit could require abatement. Many of... |
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Ruling in California case may prompt new lawsuits over lead paint
| The recent $1.1 Billion judgment against the lead paint companies in California for creating a public nuisance may have widespread impact across the nation. Workers' hired to implement the remediation effort will have to be adequately educated concerning safety procedure to avoid lead poisoning. The today's post is share from kansascity.com . Paint makers could face a surge of lawsuits after a California state court judge ordered three companies to pay $1.1 billion to help government agencies get rid of lead from an estimated 5 million homes in the state. The ruling, while preliminary, was a rare loss for an industry that had turned back some 50 lawsuits filed nationwide over the last 25 years by public agencies seeking billions of dollars to remove lead-based paint from homes built before the federal government banned the product from the U.S. market in 1987. "The California ruling is certainly a significant development," said David Logan, a class action expert and dean of Roger Williams University Law in Rhode Island. "If it gets upheld, it will open a new path to victory for public agencies." Lisa Rickard, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Institute for Legal Reform, predicted "a surge of frivolous lawsuits" because of Monday's ruling, which the industry plans to appeal. Exposure to lead is linked to learning disabilities and other health problems, especially among poor children living in older dwellings. The Centers for Disease Control... |
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Calif. judge wants paint companies to cover cost of lead removal
Lead paint has been deemed a "public nuisance" and a Judge in California has directed several former lead paint companies to pay $1.1 Billion dollars to remove the lead. Lead has long known to be a toxic substance and has been banned in the US. Workers, children and the general public are at the risk of becoming ill to lead paint still in place in older dwellings and buildings. Toady post is shared from youtube.com and the CBS Evening News.
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Stunning Loss for Lead Paint Makers in Lawsuit by California Cities and Counties
Lead paint makers suffered a landmark defeat Monday when a state court judge in San Jose, Calif., ordered the industry to create a $1.1 billion fund to eliminate lead hazards to children in hundreds of thousands of homes in the state.
The decision broke the industry’s perfect record of defending suits by public agencies seeking to extract money for removal of flaking lead paint from older homes and apartments. It marked a huge victory for 10 California municipalities — including Los Angeles County, and the cities of San Francisco and San Diego — that will be able to draw on the fund for home inspections and repairs if the ruling holds up. In the 114-page decision, Santa Clara Superior Court Judge James P. Kleinberg found three companies—Sherwin-Williams Co., NL Industries, Inc., and ConAgra Grocery Products Co.—guilty of creating a public nuisance by manufacturing and selling lead paint long after learning of its dangers. Kleinberg dismissed claims against two other defendants, ARCO and DuPont, finding there was insufficient evidence that they had sold lead paint for use in California homes. The ruling drew a scathing response from Sherwin-Williams, NL and ConAgra. “The decision violates the federal and state constitutions,” said spokeswoman Bonnie J. Campbell in a prepared statement. “It rewards scofflaw landlords who are responsible for the risk to children from poorly maintained lead paint.”... |
Click here to read the complete Decision. People v. Atlantic Richfield Company, et al.
Superior Court of California, County of Santa Clara
Case No. 1-00-CV-788657
Firms to pay $1.1-billion in long-running lead paint lawsuit
A Northern California judge Monday ordered three companies to pay $1.1 billion to remove lead-based paint from inside California homes, concluding a 13-year legal case.
Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge James P. Kleinberg ruled that ConAgra, NL Industries and Sherwin-Williams created a “public nuisance” by selling lead-based paint for decades before it was banned in 1978, finding them liable for exposing children to a known poison.
The opinion set aside $605 million, or 55% of the judgment, to pay for lead removal in Los Angeles County. The money will go into a fund administered by the state’s Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Branch and will pay for inspections and lead abatement on the inside walls of tens of thousands of homes.
“The court is convinced there are thousands of California children in the Jurisdictions whose lives can be improved, if not saved through a lead abatement plan,” the judge’s ruling said.
Local governments sued major paint manufacturers in 2000,...
[Click here to see the rest of this post]
Click here to read the complete Decision. People v. Atlantic Richfield Company, et al.
Superior Court of California, County of Santa Clara
Case No. 1-00-CV-788657
Friday, December 13, 2013
Increase in miscarriages coincided with high levels of lead in D.C. water, study finds
The study findings, which are scheduled to be published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, do not prove that the city’s lead crisis caused fetal deaths or miscarriages. But the results show a significant correlation between the two events.
Lead is an extremely toxic metal, and ingestion of lead paint dust and high doses of lead in water have been traced to brain damage, behavioral problems and developmental delays in children. Exposure to lead has also been linked to miscarriages. In the early 1900s, lead-laced pills were used to induce abortions. The study, by Virginia Tech environmental engineer Marc Edwards, contrasts sharply with government-led health studies that were released amid an outcry after people learned of hazardous lead in the water in 2004. Those studies largely rejected the notion that the water had harmed public health. The data seem “to confirm the expectation, based on prior research, that about 20 to 30 extra fetal deaths occurred each year that the lead in water was high,” Edwards said. One rushed and disputed analysis by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention asserted in April 2004 that there was no indication of health trouble from the water problem, even among children in homes with the highest lead levels in the water. Under repeated criticism, the CDC published a corrected analysis in 2010, acknowledging that this overarching statement had been misleading and based on incomplete data. Today, the city’s... |
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Three Known Causes of Death: Lead Paint, Asbestos, and PowerPoints!
Three known causes of premature human death are exposure to lead paint, asbestos, and PowerPoint presentations. The frightening reality is only two of these have been forcefully removed from our everyday lives. Many organizations still use PowerPoint presentations to communicate strategies with the hope of building understanding, while developing ownership and commitment. Some leaders even have the outlandish hope of creating enthusiasm and excitement. This is a flawed expectation, given the reality that people will tolerate the conclusions of their leaders, but will only act on their own. If people don’t change their conclusions about the business and their role in it, they will not change their actions to bring the new ideas to life. Dressing up the conclusions of leaders in a colorful deck does little to mobilize people to change.
People will tolerate the conclusions of their leaders, but will only act on their own
The key is creating a way for people to think together about the strategic imperatives for the business and challenging their current assumptions and beliefs about what will make it successful in the future. The role and goal is not to communicate new strategic acronyms, but to translate the strategic business buzzwords into shared meaning through dialogue, inquiry, and synthesis. Here are three tips that can help in avoiding the death-by-PowerPoint approach to strategy execution through people.
[Click here to see the rest of this post]
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Friday, October 25, 2013
U.S. National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week Goes Global
he U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), are partnering with the Global Alliance to Eliminate Lead Paint, to announce the Lead Poisoning Prevention Week of Action. This is the first time National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week will be recognized internationally. More than 35 countries from across the world will take action and hold public awareness activities during this week.“This year’s theme, ‘Lead-Free Kids for a Healthy Future,’ underscores the importance of testing your home for lead and understanding how to prevent harmful exposures. Given that lead impacts children around the world, we are pleased to help National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week go global this year,” said Jim Jones, EPA’s assistant administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. “Joining with other countries to raise awareness about protecting children from the harmful exposure to lead will have a long-term positive effect on the health of children worldwide.” This year, the partners will work to raise awareness about lead paint poisoning worldwide and the need to eliminate lead in paint. The... |
Thursday, October 17, 2013
This Is Your Brain on Toxins
The need for regulation and responsibility is the focus of this very interesting article that appears in The New York Times today. Today's post is shared from nytimes.org
“Lead helps to guard your health.”  One boy, Sam, born in Milwaukee in 1990, “thrived as a baby,” according to his medical record. But then, as a toddler, he began to chew on lead paint or suck on fingers with lead dust, and his blood showed soaring lead levels. Sam’s family moved homes, but it was no use. At age 3, he was hospitalized for five days because of lead poisoning, and in kindergarten his teachers noticed that he had speech problems. He struggled through school, and doctors concluded that he had “permanent and irreversible” deficiencies in brain function. Sam’s story appears in “Lead Wars,” a book by Gerald Markowitz and David Rosner published this year that chronicles the monstrous irresponsibility of companies in the lead industry over the course of the 20th century. Eventually, over industry protests, came regulation and the removal of lead from gasoline. As a result, lead levels of American children have declined 90 percent... |
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