More than 1,100 Rhode Island children were found to have elevated levels of lead in their blood last year, and 7 of them were hospitalized, according to evidence in the ongoing trial.

01:00 AM EST on Tuesday, November 15, 2005

BY PETER B. LORD
Journal Environment Writer

PROVIDENCE -- Former state Health Director Patricia Nolan testified yesterday that she believes about half the houses in Rhode Island -- roughly 230,000 to 250,000 units -- are still coated with lead-based paints that can poison children even when tiny quantities are ingested.

Reducing the state's lead-poisoning rate was one of her top goals when she became the state's health director in 1995, Nolan said. She was testifying at the beginning of the third week in the state's historic trial of its nuisance complaint against four companies that made the paints two generations ago.

Nolan's testimony was delayed by lengthy objections raised by the defendants' lawyers over the scope of her expected testimony and some documents the state provided to the defense over the weekend.

Part of the confusion apparently came about because the state told the defense that it had disclosed some of the documents at an earlier date, when in fact it had not.

The legal arguments continued until nearly 11:45 a.m., prompting Superior Court Judge Michael A. Silverstein to observe: "The court wonders if at some point we're going to get to the trial."

Nolan, a physician, testified that research is showing that even very low levels of lead in children can cause neurological damage that is irreversible.

In 2004, 7 children in Rhode Island were hospitalized with lead poisoning, Nolan said. A total of 172 were significantly poisoned and 1,167 were found with elevated lead levels in their blood.

"I believe every town but Glocester had at least one child with elevated levels that year," Nolan said.

In her first few years at the state Health Department, Nolan said she worked to better coordinate existing programs. Basically, the state focused its efforts toward reacting after a child was poisoned, she testified.

By screening all young children, the state identified those with elevated lead levels and inspected their homes.

The primary source -- by an overwhelming degree -- of lead in poisoned children, Nolan said, is lead pigments in paint.

In the late 1990s, Nolan said health officials recognized that they would never eliminate lead poisoning if they only fixed the houses of children that were poisoned.

That triggered passage of a new state law and regulations that went into effect earlier this month, giving landlords incentives to keep their houses lead-safe, Nolan said.

Nolan testified that she believes it is important to replace windows and doors and cabinets treated with lead-based paints because all are likely to deteriorate when they are opened and closed.