International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health 229 (2020) 113564

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

International Journal of Hygiene and

Environmental Health
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ijheh

Lead in New York City's soils: Population growth, land use, and T
contamination
Brian Pavilonisa,∗, Andrew Marokoa, Zhongqi Chengb
a
The CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy, Department of Environmental, Occupational, and Geospatial Health Sciences, USA
b
Brooklyn College, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, USA

A R T I C LE I N FO A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Soil is an important exposure pathway for lead (Pb) and predictor of blood lead levels (BLL) among children.
Lead Over the past two decades, many areas within New York City (NYC) have undergone a transition from industrial
Lead contamination and manufacturing land use to residential housing. This can bring new residents to areas which contain the
Brownfields legacy of historic Pb contamination. The objective of this study was to evaluate the difference in soil Pb con-
Lead exposure
centrations between community parks and greenspaces in areas undergoing rapid redevelopment and land use
Redevelopment
changes and stable areas without redevelopment. Three high- and three low-risk Pb contaminated areas within
NYC were identified based on an additive index that included population growth, industrial land use, and new
construction. Soil samples (n=358) were collected across 34 parks and analyzed with an XRF with a subset also
analyzed by ICP-MS. Areas within NYC, evaluated in this study, with a high-risk index had significantly
(p < 0.0001) larger mean concentrations of Pb in soil (374 mg/kg vs. 150 mg/kg, respectively) and double the
rate of children under the age of six years with BLL > 5ug/dL (37.94 vs. 18.72 per 1000, respectively) compared
to low-risk areas. There was a statistically significant (p < 0.05) positive correlation between street density,
manufacturing/industrial land density and population density change within 0.40 km of a park and soil Pb
concentrations. However, we were unable to estimate the source-specific contribution of Pb concentrations in
soil, since many of the variables assessed were correlated with one another. Regardless of the source, large
population increases are occurring in areas with elevated soil Pb levels. In the three high-risk areas investigated
in this study, the population has increased by over 35,000 residents between 2010 to 2017 compared to just
8,500 in the low-risk areas.

1. Introduction
In the United States (US), surface soils have been contaminated with
Lead (Pb) mostly through historical anthropogenic sources including
gasoline, paint, waste incineration, and industrial and manufacturing
uses (Lanphear et al., 2003; Newell and Rogers, 2003; Schwarz et al.,
2012; Walsh et al., 2001). One of the largest sources of historic Pb
contamination was from tetraethyl Pb which was previously added to
gasoline to prevent engine knocking. In the US, the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) mandated a phase out of leaded gasoline be-
ginning in 1973 and banned its use for on-road vehicles in 1995 due to
health concerns (Mielke et al., 2001; Newell and Rogers, 2003). Today,
the most significant current source of environmental Pb contamination
in soils is from deteriorating Pb-based paints found in housing built
before 1978 (Schwarz et al., 2012). Although the primary sources of Pb
in soil have been banned and Pb smelters have largely relocated out of
the US, the legacy of Pb remains in topsoil due to its stability in the
environment (Abadin et al., 2007; Levin et al., 2008). Studies have
found an association between increased blood lead levels (BLL) in
children and Pb contaminated soil, indicating the importance of soil
exposure pathway (Mielke et al., 2016; Zahran et al., 2013a, 2013b).
Lead is a potent neurotoxin in adults (Stewart et al., 2006) and
children (Lidsky and Schneider, 2003), regardless of the route of ex-
posure, and can negatively affect other systems, including renal
(Fadrowski et al., 2010), cardiovascular (Min and Ahn, 2017), re-
productive (Landrigan et al., 2000), and hematological (Mazumdar
et al., 2017). The biological half-life of Pb in blood is approximately 30
days, but between 20 and 30 years if deposited in bone tissue. There-
fore, Pb exposure can occur continuously over an individuals’ lifetime
as Pb is mobilized from bone into the circulation even after the external

∗
Corresponding author. The CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy, Department of Environmental, Occupational, and Geospatial Health
Sciences, New York, NY, 10027.
E-mail address: Brian.pavilonis@sph.cuny.edu (B. Pavilonis).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheh.2020.113564
Received 13 March 2020; Received in revised form 12 May 2020; Accepted 17 May 2020
Available online 15 June 2020
1438-4639/ © 2020 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.
B. Pavilonis, et al.
exposure has ceased. Physiological changes such as aging and preg-
nancy as well as certain chronic diseases can release Pb from bone and
into circulation (Abadin et al., 2007).
Compared to adults, children are more vulnerable to the effects of
Pb exposures due to considerably higher gastrointestinal absorption
rates and a rapidly developing neurological system (Abadin et al., 2007;
Lewendon et al., 2001). Additionally, children have more hand-to-
mouth contact, potentially increasing the amount of daily Pb ingestion
through non-dietary sources (Xue et al., 2007). Most concerning is that
the neurological effects of Pb appear to be permanent and even low-
level exposures in pregnancy, infancy, and early childhood may result
in permanent IQ decrements and behavioral changes (Bandeen-Roche
et al., 2009; Canfield et al., 2003; Dietrich et al., 2001; Koller et al.,
2004; Lanphear et al., 2005). Lanphear and colleagues observed a de-
cline of 6.2 IQ points in a pooled analyses of 1,333 children aged 5–10
years with an increase in BLL from < 1 to 10 μg/dL (Lanphear et al.,
2005). A prospective longitudinal study found an association of pre-
natal and postnatal exposures to Pb with antisocial and delinquent
behaviors during adolescence (Dietrich et al., 2001).
Over the past two decades, many areas within New York City (NYC)
have undergone redevelopment of industrial/manufacturing zoned land
and renovation of existing housing stock which can increase the po-
pulation density in areas that have historic Pb contamination from the
previous land uses (Pearsall, 2010). Additionally, demolition and re-
novation of older buildings, including industrial buildings, can poten-
tially emit Pb-laden dust into the atmosphere, settling in the sur-
rounding community. Studies have found a positive correlation
between geographical areas with large amounts of older housing and
increased Pb concentrations in soil (Schwarz et al., 2012; Yesilonis
et al., 2008). Children residing in areas with deteriorating housing have
been shown to have elevated BLL (Castro et al., 2019). A study con-
ducted in Detroit, MI found Pb in soil was a source of ambient Pb and
was a significant contributor to overall BLLs in children. The authors
concluded that resuspension of Pb contaminated soil is an important
exposure pathway and may be responsible for seasonal variations in
BLL (Zahran et al., 2013a).
The objective of this study was to compare the Pb concentrations in
parks and greenspaces within areas of NYC undergoing population
growth and land-use changes to those in stable areas without re-
development.
2. Methods
2.1. Site selection
A simple additive index was created in a geographic information
system (GIS) to identify neighborhoods with and high and low-risk of
Pb contamination. The index represents the highest or lowest quartiles
for population change (both count and percent), new building con-
struction density (both since 2000 and since 2010), density of toxic
release inventory (TRI) facilities (both current, to act as another mea-
sure of industrial activity, and historical, as a measure of past industrial
activity), and density of industrial/manufacturing land uses.
Cadastral (tax lot) information, including an area of new construc-
tion and industrial/manufacturing land use, was acquired from the NYC
Department of City Planning's MapPLUTO dataset (New York City
Department of Planning, n.d.). These data were represented as points
(tax lots centroids) and then converted to a continuous surface using
Kernel Density Estimation (KDE). The KDE surface quantifies the
“density” of new construction and industrial/manufacturing land use
and was parameterized using a half-mile bandwidth using building area
as the “intensity” value (i.e., larger building area results in higher
density estimates). TRI Data, acquired from the EPA, includes in-
formation on facilities operating since 1988 (US Environmental
Protection Agency, 2019). KDE surfaces were created employing the
same bandwidth parameter as above but using the release amount as
2
International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health 229 (2020) 113564
the “intensity” value. Additional demographic and socio-economic data
(race/ethnicity, educational attainment, poverty) were from ACS 2017
(5-year estimates) at the census tract-level. Road density was based on
NYC Department of City Planning's LION file (NYC Open Data, 2019). It
was calculated by measuring the total road length within the quarter-
mile buffers and dividing by the total buffer area.
Population data was collected from the American Community
Survey (ACS) via the National Historical Geographic Information
System (Manson et al., 2019). The total population was measured by
census tract-level 5-year estimates for 2006–2010 and 2013-17. A
change in the population was conceptualized in two ways: (1) absolute
change (2017 population minus 2010 population) and (2) percent
change (population change/population in 2010 * 100). Mean popula-
tion density estimates (KDE) estimates were calculated at the census
tract level to match the spatial aggregation of the ACS data. Quartiles
were then calculated for each variable to “flag” census tracts that were
in the highest or lowest 25% of values.
A simple additive index was created to identify the tracts with the
highest and lowest risk of potential Pb contamination based upon in-
dustrial and manufacturing land use, TRIs, road density, and new
construction. Parks that were either contained by, or adjacent to, three
clusters of “high-risk” tracts and three clusters of “low-risk” tracts were
then selected for sampling (see Fig. 1).
3. Spatial analyses
GIS shapefiles were obtained from the NYC Department of Parks and
Recreation. Analyses were performed at two different geographic ag-
gregates: park-level (n = 34) and geographical area-level (n = 6).
Park-level analyses utilized characteristics of the park itself (e.g., area,
Pb measurements) and contextual variables of the built and social en-
vironments within 0.40 km of the park boundary. In some instances,
NYC Department of Parks and Recreation had broken up certain parks
into discrete polygons (n = 46) and contextual variables were analyzed
according to the polygons as opposed to the entire park. Geographical
areas were constructed by combining nearby parks into aggregates,
resulting in six distinct areas. As before, 0.40 km buffers were created
around the clusters of parks in the geographical areas (see Fig. 2). Note
that these areas were named for one of the neighborhoods where they
are found; however, they are not designed to be representative of an
entire neighborhood. For instance, the geographical area named
“Greenpoint” does not represent the entire neighborhood of Green-
point. This geographical area also includes portions of other adjacent
neighborhoods, such as East Williamsburg.
3.1. Soil sampling
Soil samples were collected from a wide variety of parks within
geographic areas, including large flagship parks, community parks, and
plazas. Sampling was conducted in a grid pattern; however, parks and
greenspaces sampled in this study were irregularly shaped polygons
that contained obstruction such as hard surfaces, playground equip-
ment, and/or water. Therefore, overall park size was not an accurate
predictor of available greenspace for sampling and the sampling radius
was not uniform for each park. In general, in large community parks
(between 0.0032 and 0.19 km2) 10 to 26 samples were collected, and in
small community parks and plazas (between 0.00024 and 0.015 km2) 3
samples were collected. In two large flagship parks with areas of
1.7 km2 (Cunningham Park, Queens) to 2.7 km2 (Marine Park,
Brooklyn), 63 and 30 samples were collected, respectively. In small
community parks and plazas and in larger community parks, the
median sampling radius in which each measurement was collected was
every 0.0012 km2, and in the two flagship parks, each measurement
was collected 0.027 km2 and 0.089 km2.
B. Pavilonis, et al.
Fig. 1. Map of high and low risk lead areas throughout NYC.
3.2. Soil analyses with XRF
Approximately 50 g of surface soil (0–5 cm) were collected from
each location with a clean trowel and transferred to a clean Pb-free
paper bags and dried for 4 h in an oven at a temperature of 110 °C.
Samples were pulverized and passed through a USGS #10 (2 mm) sieve
and then transferred to Pb-free plastic bags. Lead concentrations in soil
were quantified ex-situ with a portable X-ray fluorescence (XRF) in-
strument (Thermo Scientific Niton, model XL3t) set to soil mode. Each
measurement was collected for approximately 30 s, directly from the
mixed and homogenized sampling bag. A system check was performed
prior to each usage. In addition, a series of soil standards reference
materials, produced by the National Institute of Standards and
Technology (NIST) and The United States Geological Survey (USGS),
were measured before each sampling session with the XRF. These
3
International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health 229 (2020) 113564
measurements had to fall within 2 standard deviations (SD) of the re-
ference value; if the reading fell outside that range but within 3 SD,
another reading was needed, and if acceptable, data collection could
start; if not, a system recheck was needed. The reading were: blank
(Pb = 0 mg/kg; 2 SD: 6 mg/kg), NIST 2709a (Pb = 17.3 mg/kg; 2 SD:
10 mg/kg), USGS180-706 (Pb = 761 mg/kg; 2 SD: 43 mg/kg), and
NIST 2780 (Pb = 5770 mg/kg 2 SD: 210 mg/kg). The limit of detection
(LOD) was calculated from 1.5 times the precision of the measurement,
which was two times the SD, and unique for each measurement
(Thermo Scientific, n.d.). The LOD ranged from 11.0 to 13.0 mg/kg.
3.3. Confirmation laboratory analyses with ICP-MS
Among all the samples collected, 40 selected samples were also
analyzed by ICP-MS following acid digestion to confirm the Pb results
obtained by portable XRF. Samples were first dried to constant weight
at 105 °C, disaggregated using a mortar and pestle, and then sieved to
less than 2 mm. About 0.3 g of this fine fraction was acid digested using
a microwave oven digester following the US Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) Method 3051. The digested samples were then analyzed
for Pb (and other metals) using a Dynamic Reaction Cell ICP-MS (Perkin
Elmer, Elan DRCe) at Brooklyn College (EPA Method 6020). Results
from the ICP-MS analyses corroborated the findings obtained with the
XRF. The correlation between the XRF and ICP-MS showed a high de-
gree of agreement with an of r = 0.88 and r2 = 0.78. The mean ab-
solute percent difference between the ICP-MS and XRF measurements
was 4%.
3.4. Blood lead levels
Blood lead level information was retrieved from the New York City
Department of Health and Mental Hygiene which shows the proportion
of children under 6 years old with BLL > 5 μg/dL (2011–2015) ag-
gregated by neighborhood tabulation area (NTA) (NYC Department of
Health and Mental Hygiene, 2019). As NTAs are larger than census
tracts and do not conflate with the constructed geographical areas, the
BLL values were assigned to geographical areas using areal weighting.
This method produced weighted mean rates of high BLLs based on the
area of the NTA that intersects the quarter-mile buffers. For example, if
75% of the buffer's area intersected an NTA with 10 children testing
positive for high BLL and the remaining 25% of the buffer's area in-
tersected a different NTA with 20 children testing positive, the areal-
weighted mean for that buffer would be 12.5 children with high BLL.
This method was also applied to the denominators (i.e., number of
children tested) and rates were then calculated.
3.5. Statistical analyses
SAS Statistical software (version 9.4, SAS Institute, NC) was used to
conduct all statistical analyses. Three samples were below the LOD and
measurements below the LOD were replaced with LOD/sqrt(2)
(Hornung and Reed, 1990). The normality of Pb data was assessed using
the Kolmogorov–Smirnov test, and the data was determined to be not
normally distributed and non-parametric statistics were used to eval-
uate the data. Descriptive statistics, including arithmetic means, stan-
dard deviations, and medians, were calculated. Spearman Rank Order
correlations were calculated to determine relationships between
average Pb concentrations in park polygons and variables of interest. A
Wilcoxon Two-Sample Test was used to evaluate differences in Pb
concentrations between high- and low-risk areas.
4. Results
Descriptive data of the six geographical areas sampled are presented
in Table 1. Three of the high-risk areas were clustered in Queens and
Brooklyn near the East River and central Manhattan, while the low-risk
B. Pavilonis, et al.
Fig. 2. Geographical areas sampled in the study.
areas were further from central Manhattan and located in the Bronx,
Queens, and Brooklyn. There was considerable variation in the size of
each geographical area (0.80–4.9 km2) and the number of parks sam-
pled (1–15) within each area. Larger geographical areas tended to have
larger “flagship parks” while parks located in Fort Greene had smaller
neighborhood parks and plazas, resulting in a higher number of parks
sampled over a smaller area. The Long Island City (LIC) area had the
highest number of TRIs, population increase since 2010, manu-
facturing-industrial land, and new building construction since 2000;
while, the low-risk areas were comparatively similar in all metrics
evaluated.
The demographic characteristics and BLLs of children under 6 years
old in the areas sampled are presented in Table 2. Generally, the highest
rates of poverty and increased BLLs were observed in areas with high-
risk of Pb contamination. The Fort Greene section of Brooklyn had the
highest percentage of residents below poverty, the highest rate of ele-
vated BLLs, and the lowest high school graduation rate of the six areas
studied. The Riverdale area in the Bronx had the highest percentage of
white residence and educational attainment and the lowest percentage
of residents below the federal poverty line and elevated childhood BLLs.
The results of soil Pb concentrations are shown in Table 3. The data
was highly right-skewed with mean soil Pb concentration of 272 mg/kg
and a median concentration of 161 mg/kg. Greenpoint had the highest
median Pb concentrations (480 mg/kg), while Marine Park had the
lowest (85 mg/kg). Average Pb concentrations across two geographical
areas within NYC, LIC and Greenpoint, exceeded the EPA action Pb
level in soil of 400 mg/kg in designated play areas (Abadin et al., 2007).
Lead concentrations were significantly greater (p < 0.0001) in high-
risk areas (mean = 374 mg/kg; median = 242 mg/kg) compared to
low-risk areas (150 mg/kg; median = 112 mg/kg). Approximately 22%
4
International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health 229 (2020) 113564
of parks, or 0.16 km2, sampled in high-risk areas had mean soil Pb
concentrations above 400 mg/kg. Conversely, only one park (9%) out
of eleven parks sampled in the low-risk areas exceeded 400 mg/kg. This
park, located in Fresh Meadows, was small (0.0053 km2) and only three
measurements were collected. Outlier analyses showed concentrations
were driven by a single measurement and confirmed with multiple
measurements. When this measurement was excluded, the mean Pb
concentration in the park was similar to the surrounding area. In con-
trast, elevated Pb concentrations in the high-risk areas were not driven
by a single measurement and were consistently high throughout the
park. The largest variability in Pb concentration among parks were
observed in Fort Greene and LIC and may be a function of park re-
novation.
Spearman rank-order correlations were calculated at the park-level
to determine associations between average Pb concentrations and
specific factors related to redevelopment (Table 4). The street density
had the strongest positive correlation (r = 0.59, p < 0.001) of all the
variables assessed. There was a statistically significant positive corre-
lation between Pb concentrations and manufacturing-industrial land
use (r = 0.41, p = 0.005) and population density increase (r = 0.35,
p = 0.017). All variables significantly correlated with soil Pb con-
centrations were significantly positively (p < 0.05) correlated with
one another.
5. Discussion
We identified areas within NYC with a high and low risk of Pb
contamination in soil, based on an additive index of potential sources
that included industrial and manufacturing land use, population density
change, and new construction. The median concentrations of Pb in soil
B. Pavilonis, et al. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health 229 (2020) 113564

and the rate of children < 6 years with BLL > 5 μg/dL were 2-fold
greater in high-risk areas (37.94 per 1000) compared to areas with a
density (km/
Street length

low-risk index (18.72 per 1000). Although soil samples were not col-
lected at individual residences, inferences about overall soil Pb con-
km2)

22.0
26.0
21.7
17.0
8.5
8.9
centrations across sampling areas can be made due to the spatial dis-
tribution of community parks within a geographical area and overall
construction density (km2/

land area surveyed. In our study, sampled parks represented an average

of 10.9% of the land contained in the geographical areas. A previous
Area of new building

study, which measured trace metals in urban gardens throughout NYC,

found similar concentrations of Pb in the six areas evaluated in this
study (Cheng et al., 2015). We were unable to determine which sources,
such as resuspension from construction related activities, industrial
0.361
0.197
0.436
0.004
0.026
0.001
km2)

sources, and/or roadways, contributed most to the increase of Pb in soil

since many of the variables assessed were correlated with one another.
Regardless of the source, from a public health perspective, large po-
Manufacturing/industrial
area density (km2/km2)

pulation increases in areas with Pb contamination is concerning. In the

three high-risk areas investigated in this study, the population has in-
creased by over 35,000 between 2010 and 2017 compared to just 8,500
in the low-risk areas.
It has long been recognized that exposure to Pb-contaminated house
0.078
0.080
0.200

dust and soil are important contributors to increased BLLs among

0
0
0

children (Lanphear and Roghmann, 1997). Much effort has gone into
public health education and intervention to control household dust
TRIs
# of

exposure, including Pb-based paint removal and remediation. However,

15
5
7

0
0
0

the efficacy of the interventions have been mixed and elevated BLLs in
increase since 2010

children remains persistent in many urban areas (Nussbaumer Streit

et al., 2016). Eliminating household sources of Pb without remediating
% Population

contaminated soil in the surrounding community still presents a

number of important exposure pathways for children including the
18.15
14.47
21.59
5.21
5.27
6.17

potential for inadvertent or purposeful ingestion during outdoor ac-

tivities and household track-in (Lanphear and Roghmann, 1997).
Population increase

During dry seasons contaminated soil can be resuspended through wind

erosion and a recent study found a temporal relationship between in-
creased BLL and seasonality (Zahran et al., 2013a). Some have con-
Since 2010

tended that the current EPA soil cleanup value of 400 mg/kg is too high
21,266

10,894
4,313

3,896
1,550
3,093

and should be significantly reduced to decrease Pb exposure (Laidlaw

et al., 2017; Mielke et al., 1999). Twenty-two percent of the parks lo-
cated in high-risk areas had an average Pb concentration of ≥400 mg/
Total population

kg. The Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment has a much

more conservative guideline for acceptable Pb levels in soil parklands
138,462
34,117
61,350
78,727
30,977
53,254

(140 mg/kg) (CCME, 2010). Using this criterion 74% of parks in high-
2017

risk areas would have average Pb concentrations above this health

based standard. Using an additive index, we were able to identify po-
tential areas of high Pb contamination and confirm via sampling. Public
parks sampled
Total area of

health departments can use a similar index to identify areas needed for
remediation and prioritize resources. Li et al. (2016) found similar Pb
0.0052
(km2)

0.28

0.10

0.26

‘hotspots’ in NYC using historical industrial and manufacturing maps,

1.7

2.6

environmental impact statements, and traffic patterns (Li et al., 2016).

Redevelopment can lead to unintended consequences such as gen-
# of Parks

trification and displacement of long-term residents as rent and property

Sampled

taxes increase. In our study, we found high population growth in areas

Characteristics of the geographical areas sampled.

15
3
5
6
4
1

that contained high Pb concentrations in soil. For example, LIC ex-

perienced the greatest population increase and new construction, while
(km2)

containing the largest amount of current TRIs and manufacturing and

Area

5.1
1.3
3.8
7.8
2.8
7.8

industrial land uses of all the areas evaluated. The rate of children
Brooklyn
Brooklyn

Brooklyn

under the age of six with elevated BLLs was double in the high-risk
Queens
Queens
County

Bronx

areas compared to the low-risk areas. As part of a multipronged strategy

to reduce BLLs, communities with Pb contamination should undergo
soil remediation, including parks and greenspaces. Soil abatement was
Geographical area

Fresh Meadows

conducted outside of children's homes, age 6- to 72-month-old, who

Marine Park
Fort Greene

resided near a former Pb smelting and milling operation. The authors

Greenpoint

Riverdale

observed a 2.5 μg/dl reduction in BLL in the soil remediation group

(n = 240) compared to the controls (n = 70) (Lanphear et al., 2003). In
LIC

New Orleans, over a fifteen-year period, Pb concentrations in topsoil

Table 1

High
Risk

Low

were reduced across the entire city from 99 mg/kg to 54 mg/kg. During
this same period, median BLL in children was reduced from 3.6 μg/dL

5
B. Pavilonis, et al. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health 229 (2020) 113564

Table 2
Demographic characteristics and BLLs of the areas sampled.
Geographical area % NH White % NH Black % Latinx % without HS diploma % below poverty Children's (< 6 years) BLL > 5 μg/dL rate per 1000

Fort Greene 57.7 17.8 12.9 13.1 27.6 50.2

Greenpoint 66.1 5.8 18.1 10.8 13.2 37.8
LIC 36.3 11.8 24.1 12.2 17.7 20.6
Fresh Meadows 32.0 11.0 12.5 11.9 9.3 17.3
Riverdale 65.5 7.8 19.8 5.7 5.6 9.7
Marine Park 63.0 10.2 12.0 11.6 10.4 24.8

*NH = non-Hispanic.

to 1.3 μg/dL over that same period (Mielke et al., 2019).
Demolition of buildings and excavation of properties can emit fu-
gitive dust that can deposit in the surrounding area (Muleski et al.,
2005). While most of the particulate matter would be construction-re-
lated nuisance dust, Pb contained within the structure or property could
also be emitted. New York City has specific building codes that address
requirements for mitigating construction dust and debris. Although
there have been several media reports that suggest these regulations are
not always adhered to (Kim and Weth, 2019; Pereira, 2019). We ob-
served a significant positive correlation between Pb concentrations and
population density increase; however, new building construction den-
sity within a 0.40 km radius was not significantly correlated with Pb
concentrations at the park-level. This variable was non-specific and did
not take into consideration dust mitigation practices at the construction
site and wind patterns, which would affect emission and deposition of
dust. To limit potential Pb emission, proper remediation and dust
control mitigation must be implemented and enforced prior to and
during building demolition.
This study had several limitations. First, we only collected soil
samples from publicly accessible spaces and did not include residential
soil samples. Cheng et al. (2015) found that soils in home gardens had
significantly higher Pb levels than community gardens in NYC and our
measurements are likely an underestimation of Pb in the surrounding
community (Cheng et al., 2015). We focused only on public spaces
because of easier access and higher usage by community residents.
Public parks in many neighborhoods in NYC are the only greenspaces
available in the area. Second, we were not able to evaluate the effect of
population growth and new building construction on soil Pb levels due
to the small sample size and non-random selection of parks. Many of the
community development variables assessed in this study were corre-
lated with one another. New York City has one of the highest popula-
tion densities in the US and redevelopment is logically occurring in
former manufacturing and industrial areas. Therefore, it is challenging
to assess whether redevelopment is causing increased Pb levels or a
function of available land having historic contamination. Finally, there
are many risk factors associated with elevated BLL in children that were
not evaluated in this study. Further research is needed to determine the
overall contribution of the soil pathway on childhood BLL in the sam-
pled neighborhoods.
Although the study suffered from limitations, the strengths of the
study include the collection of samples in a systematic manner and the
large area of parks sampled relative to the overall geographical area.
Prior to sampling, we identified parks/greenspaces within different
Table 4
Spearman Rank Order Correlations between select variables and average Pb
concentrations at the park-level.
Variables r p-value
Manufacturing/industrial density 0.41 0.005
Street length density 0.59 < 0.001
Population density increase 0.35 0.017
Area of new building construction density 0.19 0.200
TRI sites (#) −0.13 0.376
neighborhoods based on an additive index, which included population
growth, industrial and manufacturing land uses, and new construction.
Samples were collected systematically and an average of 10% of the
available land within the geographical areas were sampled. Lastly, even
without the ability to perform more robust statistical analyses, the
findings suggest that there is a marked difference in Pb concentrations
in soils between the high-risk and low-risk geographical areas.
6. Conclusions
The results of this study show that parks/greenspaces located in
redeveloping areas with high population growth have more Pb con-
tamination. Given the distribution and number of parks sampled per
area, it is probable that soil contamination extends beyond parks and is
occurring in residential soil as well. Research has demonstrated that
there is a positive relationship between Pb concentrations in soil and
elevated BLLs in children and the likely exposure pathway is from re-
suspension of soil during dry seasons and children inhaling dust laden
with Pb. In this study, we were not able to establish the sources of Pb
contamination and it is not clear if residents are moving into areas with
historical contamination and/or new construction and demolition of
older buildings are causing fugitive Pb dust emissions to the sur-
rounding community. It is likely a combination of both, with large
population influx and construction-related activities occurring in
former industrial areas located near central Manhattan along the East
River. Regardless of the sources, which is likely multifaceted, popula-
tion growth is occurring in areas of NYC with high Pb concentrations in
soil, which may be dramatically increasing the number of residents
potentially exposed to the metal. This, in turn, could cause an increase
of Pb-related exposures and should be of great concern to the public
health.

Table 3
Pb concentrations (mg/kg) by sample area.
Geographical area N Mean Median Std Dev Minimum Maximum Coefficient of Variation (%)

Fort Greene 134 310 210 540 12 6100 174

Greenpoint 16 450 480 160 170 700 36
LIC 44 540 270 950 26 6300 176
Fresh Meadows 92 180 120 150 23 950 88
Riverdale 42 130 110 80 9.2 410 61
Marine Park 30 110 85 85 7.8 340 81

6
B. Pavilonis, et al.
Declaration of competing interest
None.
Acknowledgments
The authors of this paper wish to thank James Sainvilus and Sangjun
Lee for their valuable contributions to the project by collecting and
processing soil samples.
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