Schenectady County Childhood Lead Poisoning Primary Prevention Program (CLPPPP)

The National Center for Healthy Housing (NCHH) has been providing technical assistance and evaluation support to the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) Childhood Lead Poisoning Primary Prevention Program (CLPPPP) since the inception of the initiative in 2007. Each of the 15 grantee programs operates within a unique local landscape that impacts the distinct challenges they face and successes they accomplish.
As a CLPPP Program grantee, the Schenectady County CLPPPP program seeks to achieve five goals:
1. Identify housing at greatest risk of lead-based paint hazards.
2. Develop partnerships and community engagement to promote primary prevention.
3. Promote interventions to create lead-safe housing units.
4. Build lead-safe work practices (LSWP) workforce capacity.
5. Identify community resources for lead-hazard control.

Since 2008, Schenectady County CLPPPP worked with property owners to remove lead paint hazards from housing in the target areas of ZIP codes 12303, 12304, 12307 and 12308 within the city of Schenectady. Within those areas, the program targets the highest-risk properties, including but not limited to homes of at-risk newborns or pregnant women; units where a child with a blood lead level greater than or equal to 10 μg/dL resides or resided in the past and now have a child age six or younger, and units adjacent to them; and rental units occupied by refugees or recipients of DSS or Section 8 housing funds. The program also inspects properties because of referrals from the Healthy Neighborhoods Program, Maternal and Child Health Home Visiting programs, and/or other partner agencies, as well as requests from owners or tenants.

Either the program’s EPA-certified risk assessors or staff members from community partner agencies
(Schenectady Municipal Housing Authority’s Section 8 program and the Community Land Trust of Schenectady) conduct the inspections. Regardless of which agency’s staff conducts the inspections, the protocol is the same. It consists of visual inspection as well as XRF (x-ray fluorescence) measurement of lead on painted surfaces. Exterior and interior painted surfaces within the unit are checked for lead hazards, as well as all common areas of the property. Inspectors also provide educational materials to residents.

Lead paint dust created during renovation work can substantially increase children’s exposure to lead. The program works to address this problem by training landlords, homeowners, and contractors in lead-safe work practices. This training focuses on reducing the amount of dust generated during paint- disturbing work, containing any dust generated, and thoroughly cleaning the jobsite after work to remove any lead-contaminated dust.