Geographic Trend of Lead Concentrations in Omaha

American Smelting and Refining Co., a lead refinery in eastern Omaha, Nebraska, emitted lead particles into the atmosphere for more than a century beginning in the 1870s. In 1992, the area surrounding the refinery was designated as nonattainment for lead. It ceased operations in 1997 and was demolished under the Nebraska Remedial Action Plan Monitoring Act two years later.

In 1998, the Omaha City Council requested the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to investigate why the Douglas County Health Department found elevated blood lead concentrations in children more often in east Omaha than anywhere else in the county. The EPA began sampling residential soil in March 1999. This map shows surface analysis of lead concentration, created through kriging soil sample data processed by the National Exposure Research Laboratory. The surface analysis provides a vital tool for concentrating cleanup efforts and in supporting EPA theories on the lead emissions.

Courtesy of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.