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Sources and Pathways of Lead Contamination in Urban Community Gardens in Toledo, Ohio

Merkley, Brett J
http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6648-0789
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1555621213052896

Abstract Details

2019, Master of Science (MS), Bowling Green State University, Geology.
Blood lead levels (BLLs) in children of the Toledo, OH area have been elevated for decades, and numerous studies have linked the issue to soil contamination by lead (Pb) paint and leaded gasoline. Young children below the age of 4 years have proven the most susceptible to Pb poisoning due to their high Pb absorption rates and direct ingestion of Pb contaminated sources resulting from instinctive hand-to-mouth behaviors. This problem is significant because high BLLs can result in many pathological and developmental problems including irreversible fetal brain damage, brain damage to the developing prefrontal cortex, behavioral problems, violence, learning disabilities, and more. The objectives of this study were to determine the primary factors leading to Pb and other heavy metals contamination in community gardens located at or near contaminated soils in Toledo, OH. Given the rising popularity of urban community gardens, it is also important to understand the sustainability of current gardening practices for minimizing exposure to Pb. A total of 399 samples were collected across 27 community gardens, of which 218 including the soil profiles of 14 community gardens were analyzed for heavy metals using an ICP-OES. Soil profiles were collected down to 40 cm depth (or maximum achievable depth based on the presence of buried rubble from demolished structures, buried foundations, etc.), and subsampled at 5 cm intervals to observe its distribution with depth. Using historical maps such as the Sanborn Fire Insurance maps combined with measuring the distribution of lead within gardens across properties, it was found that drip zones, a 1-meter area of soil immediately surrounding structures containing lead paint, is the main predictor for high lead levels in community gardens. And given that many gardens are located at the sites of demolished structures, historical maps such as the Sanborn Fire Insurance maps proved critical for determining the locations of drip zones and other aspects of land use history. And for many gardens these drip zones were the primary source of lead contamination above the 100 mg/kg action level threshold set by the USEPA (2014). Other significant factors found to influence soil Pb concentration include proximity to roads with high traffic, tilling practices, thickness of garden soil, and garden age. High traffic greatly contributed to elevated background levels of lead, and garden tilling practices proved to be the main cause of mixing between garden soil and underlying contaminated soil for gardens with soil thickness less than 20 cm. And as gardens increased in age there were noticeable trends of increased Pb contamination. Of lesser importance but still significant was the source of garden soil, presence and quality of liners, and wind transportation of Pb particles. Factors effecting garden soil Pb levels in Toledo, OH are universal to many urban areas, consequently these findings are applicable to other cities as well.
John Farver, Dr. (Advisor)
Peter Gorsevski, Dr. (Committee Member)
Yuning Fu, Dr. (Committee Member)
116 p.
Environmental Geology; Environmental Science; Geology; Health Sciences; Soil Sciences
Geology; Geochemistry; Soil Science; Environmental Science; Lead; Pb; Blood Lead Levels; Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps; Toledo, Ohio; Community Gardens; Soil Lead Concentration Profiles; Heavy Metals; Soil Contamination

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Merkley, B. J. (2019). Sources and Pathways of Lead Contamination in Urban Community Gardens in Toledo, Ohio [Master's thesis, Bowling Green State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1555621213052896

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Merkley, Brett. Sources and Pathways of Lead Contamination in Urban Community Gardens in Toledo, Ohio. 2019. Bowling Green State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1555621213052896.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Merkley, Brett. "Sources and Pathways of Lead Contamination in Urban Community Gardens in Toledo, Ohio." Master's thesis, Bowling Green State University, 2019. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1555621213052896

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

bgsu1555621213052896
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© 2019, some rights reserved.Creative Commons License Sources and Pathways of Lead Contamination in Urban Community Gardens in Toledo, Ohio by Brett J Merkley is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Based on a work at etd.ohiolink.edu.
This open access ETD is published by Bowling Green State University and OhioLINK.