Lead-contaminated drinking water in bulk-water storage tanks--Arizona and California, 1993. 1994


Lead poisoning is a major environmental health problem for children in the United States (1,2): during 1988-1991, approximately 1.7 million U.S. children aged 1-5 years had elevated blood lead levels (BLLs) (> or = 10 micrograms/dL) (3). To determine the source of lead exposure for children with BLLs > or = 20 micrograms/dL, the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) conducts environmental investigations. In 1993, as a result of investigations of increased BLLs in two children in southwestern Arizona, ADHS detected lead levels approximately 30 times the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) action level of 15 parts per billion (ppb) in bulk-delivered drinking water in the homes of these children. Because two of the three companies that supplied bulk water to southwestern Arizona were based in California, ADHS notified the California State Department of Health Services (CSDHS) about the problem. As a result, CSDHS conducted a separate investigation and identified one child with an elevated BLL whose drinking water sources included bulk-delivered water with lead levels exceeding EPA standards. This report summarizes the investigations of elevated BLLs in these three children and high lead levels in bulk-delivered drinking water in Arizona and California.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D007223 Infant A child between 1 and 23 months of age. Infants
D007854 Lead A soft, grayish metal with poisonous salts; atomic number 82, atomic weight 207.2, symbol Pb.
D007855 Lead Poisoning Poisoning that results from chronic or acute ingestion, injection, inhalation, or skin absorption of LEAD or lead compounds. Poisoning, Lead,Lead Poisonings,Poisonings, Lead
D002140 California State bounded on the east by Nevada and Arizona, on the south by Mexico and the Pacific Ocean on the south and west, and on the north by Oregon.
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D001130 Arizona State of the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA bounded on the east by New Mexico, on the north by Utah, on the west by Nevada and California, and on the south by Mexico.
D014876 Water Pollution Contamination of bodies of water (such as LAKES; RIVERS; SEAS; and GROUNDWATER.) Thermal Water Pollution,Water Pollution, Thermal,Pollution, Thermal Water,Pollution, Water,Pollutions, Thermal Water,Pollutions, Water,Thermal Water Pollutions,Water Pollutions,Water Pollutions, Thermal
D014881 Water Supply Means or process of supplying water (as for a community) usually including reservoirs, tunnels, and pipelines and often the watershed from which the water is ultimately drawn. (Webster, 3d ed) Supplies, Water,Supply, Water,Water Supplies
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