Ethical implications: Elevated blood lead levels in high risk populations

Public health nurses have a professional mandate to improve the public's health. This presentation will present a case study about the recent "lead in drinking water crisis" in Washington, DC, which was precipitated by a change in the water purification system. The effect of the change caused lead to leach from the older pipes into the drinking water. The presenters will analyze this case in the light of environmental justice and the application of the Precautionary Principle. Environmental justice proposes that no group of individuals of any race, ethnic or socioeconomic group should bear an unequal portion of harmful environmental consequences. The Precautionary Principle states that when the public's health is at risk, it may not be necessary to wait until there is scientific evidence to take actions to protect the public. Edwards, Triantafyllidou & Best (2009) reported for DC children ≤ 30 months no strong correlation between water lead levels (WLL) and elevated blood lead (EBL). However, these findings reflected data from children in all 8 of DC's wards. When these data were analyzed according to zip codes, there was a strong correlation between specific zip codes and elevated blood lead levels. This "geographic phenomenon" showed that the incidence of EBL was 2.4 times higher in children in high-risk neighborhoods. Using lead in the DC water supply as a case study, this presentation will discuss how public health nurses implement the core functions of public health to assure a safe, just environment and a clean water supply.