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EPA UNDERTAKES LEAD SAMPLING AT VACANT LOTS IN PROVIDENCE

Release Date: 09/23/1998
Contact Information: Peyton Fleming, EPA Press Office (617-918-1008)

BOSTON - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today will be collecting soil samples from a dozen or more vacant lots in the City of Providence to determine if high levels of lead are present on the properties.

The sampling, which will be done today and tomorrow through the EPA's Urban Environmental Initiative, is part of a coordinated effort by EPA, the City of Providence and community groups to help facilitate the purchase of vacant city lots by local residents.

Under the city's new Special Vacant Lot Program, in return for buying the parcels at a substantially reduced price, new local owners will be responsible for keeping the lots clean and returning them to productive use such as community gardens or parks. The lots will be available from the Providence Redevelopment Agency for a cost of $1.

"Hats off to Mayor Cianci and DARE. This is the new EPA at work in urban neighborhoods and we appreciate his help," said John P. DeVillars, administrator of the EPA's New England Office. "Providence's Special Vacant Lot Program holds great promise for addressing the city's huge vacant lot problem. But until these parcels are evaluated for possible lead contamination, nobody will want to assume ownership of these properties. We expect our soil sampling program will remove this roadlock so properties that don't have high lead concentrations can be transferred quickly. We also hope to sample many more vacant lots in the future."

"I'm very glad that the EPA's Urban Environmental Initiative is moving forward to test soil on these vacant lots for lead," added Jacqueline Hicks, a member of Direct Action for Rights and Equality (DARE), a community group participating in the Special Vacant Lot Program. "This will help Direct Action for Rights and Equality's efforts to speed-up transfer of vacant lots to homeowners and neighbors."

Today and tomorrow's sampling will focus on a list of priority sites identified by DARE, Providence's Department of Planning and the Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Environmental Affairs.

Soil sample results are expected by late November. Once the sampling is complete and the results are in, EPA will work with the community groups, local residents and the City of Providence to interpret the data and decide how to move forward.

The City of Providence has approximately 4,000 vacant lots, many of which pose a wide range of public health and environmental risks for city residents, including possible lead poisoning. Due to the city's older housing stock and the prevalence of lead paint and lead piping, the city has a severe lead poisoning problem. One of every five children under the age of six in Providence have elevated lead levels in their blood.