The contribution of lead contamination sites to childhood lead poisoning in the Hawaiian Islands

Abstract

This internship was in conjunction with the Hawaiʻi State Department of Health’s (HDOH) Hazard Evaluation and Emergency Response (HEER) Office with the overall goal of the project being to improve the understanding of the geographic distribution of childhood lead poisoning in Hawaiʻi to inform childhood lead poisoning prevention efforts. The internship included the collection and mapping of blood lead data from the years 2015-2019 and environmental pollution data, such as lead contaminated sites, to help identify potential sources of lead exposure. These data were then analyzed to identify relationships between elevated blood lead levels (EBLLs) and factors such as distance from nearest site, lead concentration value at nearest site, and their interaction. The results of this analysis support the idea that most childhood exposures to lead in Hawaiʻi occur in the household. This report goes into more detail about the work described above and reflects on how this internship has benefitted both my mentor agency and myself.