Growing Healthy Soil for Healthy Communities

Children’s Environmental Health Sciences Core Center

Translational Research Committee

July 30, 2013

Pilot Project Team Members

• Medical College of Wisconsin

• Sixteenth Street Community Health Center

• University of Wisconsin-Madison

• Walnut Way Conservation Corporation

• *Symbiont: Science, Engineering and Construction

Outline

• Description of the Pre Pilot and Pilot Study

– Background & Objectives

– Specific Aims

• Results

• Discussion/Next Steps

Background

• Public Health:

– Lead poisoning remains a top environmental threat to children

• Urban Agriculture is booming

– Community-building tool

– Land disposition strategy

– Food security & nutrition

Objective

• Test the feasibility of integrating principles of CBPR with environmental site assessment methods to explore the relationship between residential backyard gardening and lead exposure in children and families.

Pre-PilotUrban Gardens and Soil Contaminants

(Jan 2011-March 2011)• Developed gardening practices structured

interview and checklist

• Collected descriptive data to characterize project neighborhoods

• Recruited first cohort of 11 gardeners

• Collected qualitative and quantitative data from residents, including attitudes regarding soil and plant testing, BLL testing and DNR reporting requirements.

• Developed soil/plant sampling plan

PilotGrowing Healthy Soil for Healthy Communities

Aug 2011- Present

• Increased community engagement and resident participation in research

• Conducted gardening practice interviews, soil and plant tissue testing

• Communicated findings to community residents and other stakeholders

• Identified future research directions

Methods Overview

Recruitment

– Randomly selected properties pre-screened for presence of a garden using MCAMLIS and ArcGIS software

– In person canvassing of prescreened properties to

– confirm backyard gardening activities

– confirm children/grandchildren < 6 years old

Primary Data

– Structured Interviews and Checklist

– Residential Soil and Produce

– Commercial Soil and Produce

– Community feedback sessions

Methods: Residential Soil Sampling

• Three Locations– Garden

– Lawn

– Drip Line

• Two Depths– Surface Layer (top 3.5”)

– Deeper Layer (3.5” to 6”)

• X-Ray Florescence (XRF) & Lab Analysis

Methods: How did we operationalize CBPR?

Iterative Process

• Iterative process that sought input and feedback from residents through:• Expansion of research team to include 2 more neighborhood residents

• Focus groups

• Community feedback sessions

• Topics Covered:

• Informed consent process

• Data collection methods – XRF vs. laboratory methods

• Aggregate interview, soil and plant results

• Next steps/Action Research agenda

Results: Interviews(Combined pre-pilot and pilot)

Neighborhood 1 (n=9)

• More than half (56%) of participants were in 25-44 age groups

• Children participated in gardening activities

– Picking (78%)

– Planting (78%)

– Watering (78%)

– Preparing (44%)

– Weeding (44%)

– Tilling (22%)

Neighborhood 2 (n=11)

• The majority (64%) of participants were in 55+ age groups

• Children participated in gardening activities:

– Picking (100%)

– Planting (82%)

– Watering (73%)

– Weeding (73%)

– Preparing (55%)

– Tilling (18%)

Results: Soil TestingXRF measurements compared to

laboratory methods

XRF performed well – about 95% accurate compared to the more expensive and time consuming laboratory methods

Results: Residential Soil Contamination Participant Report

Results: Summary of Lead in Soil for All Participants

Site Minimum Maximum Average

Parts per million (ppm) lead (Pb)

Garden 8 2,370 396

Drip Line 16 3,234 691

Lawn 8 1,107 272

Site Minimum Maximum Average

Parts per million (ppm) lead (Pb)

Garden 29 1,982 439

Drip Line 16 2,779 602

Lawn 7 1,049 235

Surface 0 to 3.5 inches

3.5 to 6 inches

Results: Vegetables

Vegetable # Lead (Pb) - ppmOnions 10 0.22Peppers 10 0.14Tomatoes 10 0.34Zucchini 8 0.48

Store- or Market-Bought Produce

Residential Produce

# Lead (Pb) - ppmLeafy Vegetables 19 2.7Root Vegetables 4 1.5Tomatoes and Peppers 23 0.7

Results: Commercial Soils Very Low Lead

• Similar to natural “background” levels in non-contaminated soils

Soil Lead Content (ppm)

WalMart Miracle Gro Organic Choice 6

Home Depot EarthGrow Topsoil 11

Home Depot Scotts Topsoil 7

Growing Power 6

Interpretation of Results

• <400 ppm: can be used for gardening

• 400 to 1200 ppm: use precautions when gardening

• >1200 ppm: do not garden, cover with grass

0 400 800 1200 1600

Parts per million (ppm) of lead (Pb) in soil

* Thresholds as specified by US Environmental Protection Agency

* *

Results: Interpretation for Residents

Risk Reduction Strategies

>1200 ppm Lead in Soil

Eliminate exposure to bare soil

• Remove contaminated soil; Cover with walking stones or bark chips; Plant grass and fertilize to ensure dense cover

400 to 1200 ppm Range

Minimize exposure to soil

• Wash vegetables to remove soil; Use door mats to keep soil out of home; Wash hands after gardening

Reduce the bioavailability of lead in the soil• Apply phosphorus fertilizer to the garden; Add compost or topsoil to

dilute contaminated soil

< 400 ppm Range

The EPA requires no action, but following the practices previously discussed is a good idea, especially as levels approach 400 ppm

Results: Interpretation for Residents

Results: How did we operationalize CBPR?

Capacity Building

• Two community residents joined the research team

– 1 hired as a part-time community research associate

– 1 chose a volunteer role

• Received training and participated in:

– revising data collection tools

– canvassing, recruitment and retention

– conducting structured interviews and focus groups (as either interviewer or note taker)

– lead sampling technician training (1 CBO staff/resident,1 CBO staff/nonresident)

Results: How did we operationalize CBPR?

Dissemination• Community Campus Partnerships for Health Annual Conference

(2012)

• MPTV 4th Street Forum (2012)

• Lindsay Heights Research Council (2012)

• MCW Clinical Translational Science Institute Research in Progress Seminar (2011)

• MCW Public and Community Health Doctoral Seminar (2012)

• UWM Zilber School of Public Health, Social and Environmental Justice PhD Course Lecture (2013)

• WDNR Brownfield Study Group (2013)

• CEHSCC External Advisors Meeting (2013)

• Progress in Community Health Partnerships (manuscript accepted, July 2013)