LeadContaminationinDrinkingWaterandAssociatedHousingCharacteristicsintheMississippiDelta
KristieWillett,StephanieOtts,JohnGreen,LynnWoo,AlexFratesi,RachelHaggard,CathyJanasie,CammiThornton,JosephineRhymes
Lead(Pb)
Oneofoldestmoststudiedtoxicants,ubiquitousSources:smelters,coalburning,leadedgas,pipesesp.ifpHlessthan6.4,potteryglazes,paint
http://www.epa.gov/lead/
ProjectBackground• UMLeadinDrinkingWaterTeamformedin2016.Co-ledbyJohnGreen(sociology),StephanieOtts(law),andKristieWillett(toxicology).
• ORSPInvestmentGrantin2016toworkwithcommunitypartnersinMississippiDeltatoraiseawarenessoftheissueandcollect/analyzeresidentialwatersamples.
• MWRRIgrantin2017toassesseffectivenessofvariouscommunityengagementstrategies.
• ApproachedbyFoundationfortheMid-Southin2018toexpandworktoJacksontosupporteffortsofJacksonWaterCoalitionfundedin2018byUMCommunityWellbeingConstellation.
ResearchQuestions• Can multi-disciplinary, multi-method, andcommunity-basedapproaches to researchprovidemoredatatotestforpotentialleadexposure?
• Can these data be used to inform bettermonitoring,outreach,andpolicyreform?
• BasedonLCRviolations,ourworkhas focusedoncountiesinandcontiguoustotheMississippiDelta.
http://reic.uwcc.wisc.edu/water/
CommunityPartners• NewPathwaystoHealthInitiative,Tri-CountyWorkforceAlliance• JamesC.KennedyWellnessCenter• Right!FromtheStartProgramstaffandchurchpartners• MississippiStateUniversityExtension• HarvardLawSchoolMississippiDeltaProject/DeltaDirectionsConsortium• AaronE.HenryCommunityHealthCenterandDeltaHealthCenter
J.Rhymes
S.SnellRight!fromtheStartInitiative
J.Barrett
CommunityEngagement&WaterTestingProcess
If water lead concentrationis>5ppb,afilterisprovidedto resident. All participantsreceive their results andleadinfosheet.
Findings• 307householdshaveparticipatedintheprojectinsomeway
ü 214householdsrespondedtothesurveyandreturnedwatersamples
ü Datarepresents16countiesand50censustractswiththemajorityfromHumphreys(n=42)andCoahoma(n=39),thenPanola(n=26),Sunflower(n=20),Washington(n=20),Bolivar(n=19),andQuitman(n=17)counties
ü Percent bottle return from 8 different engagementapproachesrangedfrom49-100%withanaverageof70%.
ü Participantswithleadconcentrationsexceeding5ppb(n=10)receivedcertifiedNSF/ANSIStandard53filter.
Leadanddrinkingwaterhouseholdcharacteristics(Householdsreturningbothquestionnairesandwatersamples,Totaln=214)
CharacteristicsDeltaMS
f %
Housingtenure
Renters 61 30
Owners 134 65
Otherarrangement 12 5
Housingtype
House 162 78
Mobilehome 22 10
Apartment/townhouse 25 12
Knowwhenbuilt(yes) 113/206 54
Built1985orearlier(yes) 54/113 48
Pipeseverreplaced
Yes 34 17
Unsure 78 38
No 90 45
SourceofwaterPublicsystem 180 89Well 23 11
Usefilterfordrinkingwater(yes) 64/213 30
Usefilterforice(yes) 66/213 31
DrinkingwaterpHandleadconcentrationresults(ppb)
CharacteristicspH
(n=213)Lead(ppb)(n=214)
Mean 7.74 0.84
Median 7.82 0.30
Standarddeviation 0.52 1.86
Minimum-Maximum 5.84–9.13 nd–14.32
Pearson’scorrelationbetweenpHandleadconcentration -0.35
LeadConcentrationvs.WaterpHorYearHousingStructureWasBuilt
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
0 2 4 6 8 10
Aver
age
lead
con
cent
ratio
n (p
pb)
pH of water sample
JacksonMetroRegionDeltaandNorthernRegion
r=-0.35
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
1880 1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000 2020 2040 Aver
age
lead
con
cent
ratio
n (p
pb)
Year housing structure was built
r=-0.23
Conclusions• Research revealed that some communities in Mississippi are
experiencingelevatedconcentrationsofleadintheirdrinkingwater.
• Neither water pH nor age of housing consistently predicted higherleadconcentrations.
• In a well-owner community event, 6 of the 20 samples had leadconcentrations above the FDA’s 5 ppb limit. The averagepHof thewellsampleswas6.97.
• http://nsglc.olemiss.edu/projects/lead-contamination/index.html
OngoingWork• Continue to informandempowerMississippi residents/parents tomake
behavioral choices in their own homes and communities throughresidentialandschooldrinkingwatertestingevents.
• Enhance community engagement in high risk exposurepopulations (e.g.JacksonMS,wellowners,andnewmothers).
• Assess programmatic features, such as implementation and outreachdifferences across the rural-urban continuum, to make scalablerecommendationsforthestateandnation.
