[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 6]
[Senate]
[Page 7513]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       LEAD SMELTER SITES IN OHIO

  Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Madam President, I rise to bring attention to a 
problem plaguing many aging communities in Ohio and throughout the 
industrial Midwest. We in this country have a rich manufacturing 
heritage, none richer than Ohio. We are the third leading manufacturing 
State in the country, trailing only in production, and trailing only 
States two and three times our size--Texas and California. We have 
built an infrastructure in this country that defined the landscape of 
the modern world.
  At Ohio plants in places such as Middletown and Youngstown, Ohioans 
made steel beams that built America's skyscrapers, railroads, and 
bridges. And at lead smelter sites from Cleveland to Cincinnati, OH, 
workers processed metal to shore up the economic foundation of 20th 
century America. But as revealed in a disturbing series of recent 
reports in USA TODAY, former lead smelter plants have left behind a 
terrible legacy: elevated lead levels in the soil and in the air and 
surrounding playgrounds and schools, especially in poorer areas of our 
cities. Many of these potentially contaminated places are in 
underresourced, aging areas where homes are not necessarily in good 
shape and where neighborhoods are plagued with many other problems as 
well.
  Yesterday I met with Angelina and Ken Shefton in Cleveland at a 
property that is within breathing distance of an old lead smelter site. 
What is even more troubling is that they didn't even know this existed. 
They are parents of five. One of their sons was recently diagnosed with 
elevated blood lead levels. They fear for the other four children also. 
Parents such as them and thousands of Ohioans living in communities 
with aging and abandoned industrial sites are worried about the health 
and safety of their families.
  A national newspaper report found that lead levels in soil near this 
smelter plant in Cleveland exceed 3,400 parts per million. The average 
lead level in U.S. soils is only 19 parts per million.
  As a father and grandfather, I am particularly disturbed by these 
reports. We know that lead is not broken down when it lingers in the 
ground. It can enter our groundwater and children can absorb it on the 
baseball diamond or while making mud pies in the yard.
  For too long regulators have overlooked or neglected to fully 
investigate toxic sites in our communities. That is why I am urging the 
Federal Government to take action. I have called on the Senate 
Environment and Public Works Committee to hold a hearing on what we can 
do to address this issue. We need to prioritize testing our schools and 
playgrounds in those neighborhoods close to abandoned sites.
  I am asking the EPA to take immediate action to review sites that 
have not yet been tested. But that is not enough. After the results 
come in, we need to take action to clean up residual contamination.
  Last week the CDC lowered by half the recommended allowable limit for 
lead exposure to young children, so we must ramp up our efforts to 
address the problem lingering in our soil. We need to address it now. 
Too many young lives are depending on our actions. Too many children in 
too many urban school districts suffer from behavior problems, suffer 
from intelligence problems, if you will, because they have had far too 
high lead levels in their blood which retard growth, restrict learning, 
and cause behavioral problems. It is a serious public health problem. 
It is the paint on the walls in these old homes, and it is the lead in 
the paint on the walls. It is the lead in the soil of the homes and 
neighborhoods and playgrounds. It does call for real action from State 
and Federal Governments and local communities.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Kansas.

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