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This is because New Jersey has some of the oldest housing stock in the country. It is estimated that 60 percent of New Jersey's housing stock - about two million units - were constructed before 1978, when the sale of lead-based paint was banned. In contrast, only 40 percent of housing stock nationwide is estimated to contain lead-based paint.
Worse, about one million units in New Jersey were built before 1950, when household paint contained extremely high levels of lead pigments.
In Camden County, about 1 in 4 homes, or about 58,000 of 205,000 residences, were built before 1950, while 72 percent of homes were built before 1978.
In Burlington County, about 1 in 6 homes, or about 25,000 of 172,000 residences, were built before 1950, while 59 percent of homes were built before 1978.
In Gloucester County, about 1 in 5 homes, or about 18,000 of 105,000 residences, were built before 1950, while about 54 percent of the homes were built before 1978.
In Salem County, about 1 in 3 homes, or about 8,500 of 27,000 residences, were built before 1950, while about 74 percent of the homes were built before 1978.
Lead poisoning can cause brain damage, developmental delays, reduced IQ, reading and learning disabilities, behavioral problems, hearing impairments, and hyperactivity.
A yearlong investigation by my office showed that thousands of New Jersey children continue to be lead poisoned in their homes every year, usually by ingesting lead-based paint chips or lead dust.
What's worse, we found children who were re-poisoned in homes that were supposed to have been cleaned up!
Our investigation took us to more than 100 addresses in five cities where multiple children had previously been poisoned. To our surprise and alarm, we found lead dust levels exceeding the federal standard in 82 percent of the homes we visited.
We also observed shamefully shoddy abatement and cleanup work and interviewed families of children whose blood lead levels actually rose after abatement.
My department made the results of our investigation public in late April, and I am pleased to say that Gov. Corzine recently signed an executive order requiring the state departments that deal with this issue to improve response to childhood lead poisoning.
The good news is that the number of children in the state identified as having levels of lead in their blood has decreased to fewer than 4,000. In addition, the percentage of young children who are tested has increased. But the bad news is that not all young children are tested.
Gloucester County is shown to test only about 12 percent of all children under age 6; Camden County tests about 17 percent; Burlington County tests 11 percent; Salem County, 14 percent.
If you have children living in your home, it would be wise to make sure that their blood lead levels have been tested. You can request a free kit to test your home for lead contamination through the state Department of Community Affairs.
Decades after lead was removed from household paint and from gasoline, it is completely unacceptable that thousands of our children continue to suffer the ill effects of lead poisoning.
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