Certified Lead Risk Assessor Jeff Mitchell tests a Jamestown home for lead paint.

The 14701 zip code has the seventh highest number of lead poisoned children in New York State outside of New York City.

That data is according to New York State Department of Health’s 2020 data and being shared by the Healthy at Home CHQ Coalition for National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week to raise awareness of the childhood lead poisoning problem plaguing communities.

Healthy At Home CHQ Coalition Director Lisa Schmidtfrerick-Miller said that, “Every year, an average of 85 Chautauqua County children are testing at blood lead levels exceeding the New York State action threshold of 5 micrograms per deciliter, and about 60 of those children are in the City of Jamestown.”

Schmidtfrerick-Miller encourages folks to learn about the hazards of lead, to test older homes for lead, and to make sure that children are getting recommended blood tests to detect lead.

The most common source of lead exposure locally is from lead-based paint, which was used in many homes built before 1978. Chautauqua County, and Jamestown in particular, have some of the oldest housing stock in the United States.

Tiny amounts of lead can often cause loss of IQ, learning disabilities, and behavior problems in children.

For more information on free home testing for families with children under age six, and free EPA training and certification for contractors and landlords, visit https://chqgov.com/environmental-health/lead-poisoning-prevention or call 716-753-4489.

To learn more about Chautauqua Opportunities, Inc. HUD Lead-CHHP program which removes and repairs lead paint at no cost for qualifying tenants and homeowners, visit https://www.chautauquaopportunities.com/lead-program/.