Lead intoxicated children in Kabwe / Zambia

Introduction: Kabwe was an important lead and zinc mining town in Zambia for over 90 years, leaving large quantities of lead contaminated waste tailings behind as well and extensive topsoil contamination through dry deposition. Lead is a well-known serious health hazard, causing anemia, seizures, encephalopathy and death. Soil in many of Kabwe’s residential areas is highly contaminated and serious ongoing childhood exposure persists today. The purpose of this presentation is to describe the current lead contamination problem and environmental health consequences for this community. Methods: Environmental lead assessments and health data for Kabwe’s children were collected and analyzed. Data is available from three different sources: Copperbelt Environment Project; Blacksmith Institute/ Pure Earth and University of Zambia / Hokkaido University in Sapporo/ Japan. The data was compiled and analyzed to provide a summary of the current environmental health impact from lead contamination. Results: In most housi...