You asked what standard the state uses in remediating lead-contaminated soil, and if different standards apply to residential, industrial, commercial and recreational land. You specifically asked whether 400 parts per million (ppm) or 1,200 ppm is the appropriate standard for residential property. You also asked about lead remediation standards in other states.

SUMMARY

State regulations require lead-contaminated soil to be cleaned up to a concentration of 500 ppm in residential areas and 1,000 ppm in industrial and commercial areas. But in practice the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and state and local health departments apply a 400 ppm standard in residential areas. DEP has begun the process of adopting the 400 ppm standard in regulation.

For lead paint-based contamination, the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has established a two-part residential lead standard of 400 ppm in areas where children play, and 1,200 ppm in other areas. (Other EPA programs that deal with remediating lead contamination, such as those regulating hazardous waste sites, recommend a 400 ppm standard for residential sites, but may use a different standard based on site-specific data. )

DEP differs from the EPA standards in that it applies the 400 ppm standard throughout the entire site. It also applies the 400 ppm standard to recreational areas. Under DEP regulations, residential areas include playgrounds, outdoor recreational areas, schools, hospitals, and day care centers, as well as houses, apartments and condominiums.

Different states may require remediation of lead contamination in soil at different lead concentrations. Meg Harvey, a toxicologist with the Department of Public Health, says most states use the 400 ppm standard. But she said Massachusetts and Wisconsin have lower residential standards for lead of 300 ppm and 250 ppm, respectively, while Pennsylvania's residential standard is 500 ppm. We have attached a list of state standards published in 2001 by the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL). The list is also available on-line at this NCSL website.

CONNECTICUT LEAD DIRECT EXPOSURE CRITERIA

In 1996, the DEP adopted Remediation Standard Regulations, which set direct exposure criteria for a variety of contaminants in soil (Conn. Agency Regs. § 22a-133k-1 et seq. ). The regulations require the remediation of soil to meet the direct exposure criteria for a particular contaminant.

The regulations set the criteria for lead at 500 ppm in residential areas and 1,000 ppm at industrial and commercial sites (Conn. Agency Regs. § 22a-133k-3, Appendix A). Requirements for commercial and industrial areas are generally less stringent than for residential areas because children are typically not exposed to the contaminants in the former areas, and adults are exposed to them for shorter periods of time than they would be at their homes.

However, in 2004, the DEP entered into a memorandum of agreement with EPA (attached) which allocates responsibility for the state hazardous waste program authorized under the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) (42 USC 6901 et seq. ).

Among other things, DEP agreed to adhere to EPA's 400 ppm standard when remediating lead-polluted soil at residential sites subject to RCRA corrective action. (DEP has the authority to exceed its own regulations under Conn. Agency Reg. § 22a-133k-2(i), which authorizes the DEP commissioner to take additional steps to prevent or abate any threat to human health or the environment. )

According to DEP's Robert Bell, the department has since applied the 400 ppm standard to all residential soil remediation projects, not just those subject to RCRA. Meg Harvey, of DPH, says DPH and local health departments also use the 400 ppm residential standard.

LEAD EXPOSURE AND EPA'S 400/1,200 PPM STANDARD

According to the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, lead is dangerous in large part because moderate or low but chronic exposure can damage the developing nervous system of young children. According to the federal Centers for Disease Control, blood lead levels as low as 10 micrograms per deciliter (100 parts per billion) are associated with decreased intelligence and impaired neurobehavioral development. With the phasing out of lead in gasoline in the 1970s, lead in paints and soils became the principal source of exposure in the U. S.

In 2001, EPA adopted a two-part lead remediation standard for bare residential soil: 400 ppm in play areas, and 1,200 ppm for bare soil in the rest of the yard. This standard, under the federal Toxic Substances Control Act (15 USC § 2601 et seq. ), primarily applies to lead-based paint in housing built before 1978 and occupied by children. Children who live in pre-1978-housing, especially those who live in inner cities, or in housing built before 1950, and adults exposed to lead at work are at the greatest risk from exposure to lead.

EPA selected the 400 ppm standard because that is the level at which a child has a 1% to 5% risk of having a blood lead level of 10 micrograms per deciliter. However, EPA applied the 400 ppm standard only to the areas in which a child might play.

EPA set a 1,200 ppm standard for the remainder of a residential site. EPA stated in its final rule that it could not justify the costs of remediating an entire yard to 400 ppm, and that 400 ppm was not a reasonable public policy choice without additional site-specific information. But EPA did recommend that remedial action be considered in certain areas even where the lead level in bare soil is less than 1,200 ppm, particularly where there is a concern that children 6 years and under might spend substantial time there, or that the bare soil in those areas may contribute to lead levels in the dwelling or play areas.

But DEP applies the lower 400 ppm standard throughout residential areas. According to DEP's Bell, it does so because it is hard to know where children may or may not be playing, and because DEP seeks a long-term remediation solution unlikely to be challenged if remediation standards should become more strict.

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