After LA wildfires, lead contamination threatens residents

• LA residents test for lead poisoning post wildfires
• Sample results exceed state-mandated acceptable levels of lead
• Questions raised over who pays for soil remediation

LOS ANGELES - The Fenwick family were fortunate. After a harrowing evacuation in the dead of night from a raging wildfire northeast of Los Angeles in January, Michelle, Darcy and their two children returned to find they still had a home.

Four months later, though, they and thousands of other residents near the burn scar of the Eaton Fire whose homes were spared face a renewed threat - invisible and potentially lethal elevated levels of lead in the soil.

The Fenwicks stood in line with hundreds of other people last week to have their blood tested for lead at a free mobile site staged by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (DPH).

"My biggest concern has been lead poisoning, especially for the 18-month-old, because she is currently at the phase where she puts everything in her mouth," said Michelle Fenwick as her husband Darcy held the baby and wrangled their 5-year-old son.

The testing comes after the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in February refused to conduct follow-up soil testing on destroyed properties once they were cleaned up.

FEMA also said it had no plans to test intact property.

But the county announced in early April that soil sample tests it ordered revealed that a high percentage of samples exceeded state-accepted levels of lead on land outside but adjacent to the Eaton Fire boundary.

Lead contamination can cause neurotoxicity and organ damage with exposure over time, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Hand-to-mouth transfer is the predominant cause of lead accumulation in children, and it can cause learning problems, developmental delays and behavioural issues, experts say.

"Lead is a dangerous neurotoxin, and even low levels in the body, especially in children, can cause long-lasting harm," Dr. Nichole Quick, DPH chief medical advisor, told residents in an online town hall meeting on April 10.

Blood tests performed on residents before early April showed no one with abnormal levels, but "no amount of lead is safe," Quick said.

Lead accumulates in the blood over time, and it can take weeks to months to show up.

"Given the timing of the wildfire and current test results, we would generally expect to see elevated levels by now if significant exposure had occurred," DPH said in a statement to Context.

"Continued offering of blood lead testing ensures we don't miss any delayed or ongoing exposures."

Anyone who tested positive for lead would be called within three days, the DPH said. Everyone else would get their results by mail.

Impact on property prices

The Fenwicks have followed all of the recommended steps to protect their children.

"We've done cleaning, we've put AstroTurf down, we've covered dirt with mulch to prevent any exposure," Michelle Fenwick said.

Depending on the test outcomes, however, she said they may consider a more permanent solution – moving.

But what price they might get for their home after the devastating Eaton and Palisades fires burned more than 40,000 acres, killing at least 27 people and destroying more than 12,3000 structures, is another question.

Land contamination of all sorts can "significantly decrease property values," according to LandApp, a real estate data company.

The area's older housing, dating back at least a century, is the principal source of the Eaton Fire's lead, and homes built before 1978 were almost certainly covered in lead-based paint and often had lead pipes.

For many people, moving is not an option. An initial spike in rental prices after the fires sparked concerns about price gouging though prices have since dropped.

But the demand of thousands of people displaced far outstrips the area's housing supply.

Patricia Roach, a retired probation officer also standing in line for a blood test, said she was staying put.

"Where would I go?" she asked. "Because what I would get for my house, I couldn't buy another place."

The county hired environmental consulting firm Roux Inc. to perform soil testing on 367 intact properties downwind of the burn zone within one mile.

Tests revealed that in Roach’s and the Fenwicks’ neighbourhoods, a majority of samples exceeded state-mandated acceptable levels of lead. 

Costly clean up

Another question is whether home owners will have to foot the bill for soil remediation if needed.

Owners of destroyed property are entitled to testing and removal of the top six inches of contaminated soil by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, as directed by FEMA.

But those with undamaged homes may have no such recourse.

The DPH said it has sought assistance with further assessment of the fire impacts from FEMA but, under federal funding cuts, it is not clear the agency will provide any help.

In a statement to Context, Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger's office said the county is paying for soil testing but "encourages residents to seek financial assistance for cleanup from their insurance companies."

Adam Love, principal scientist at Roux, said at the town hall that a chemical buildup that exceeds the state's prescribed levels "doesn’t mean a cleanup has to occur."

It might mean additional scrutiny is needed, he said.

So if a blood test showed a high lead amount, that person may want to have their land tested further and have soil removed, according to county officials.

At the testing site, baby Lily Fenwick's parents looked anguished as nurses stuck a needle in her tiny arm, and she let loose a guttural wail.

Despite the pain, the parents are encouraging others to get the testing done.

"Bite the bullet," Michelle Fenwick said. "Get the blood drawn. Because that's the only way you're really going to know."

(Reporting by Rachel Parsons; Editing by Anastasia Moloney and Ellen Wulfhorst.)