Wednesday, July 08, 2009
The soil at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
If you happened to get invited to the White House for a meal -- admittedly, a highly improbable prospect for TigerHawk readers (with the possible exception of commenter Christopher Chambers) -- you might want to stay away from the snap peas and the lettuce. The Guardian is reporting that somewhat elevated levels of lead have been found in the soil in Michelle Obama's White House vegetable garden:
"A spokeswoman for the White House said the soil in the garden had lead concentrations of 93 parts per million of lead. Health experts say it is safe to raise leafy vegetables in soil with concentrations of 10-50 parts per million, and urban gardens typically have raised lead levels. However, it is advised for young children to be tested for exposure to lead if they play in areas where lead concentrations exceed 100 parts per million. The Environmental Protection Agency puts the threshold for dangerous lead levels at 300 parts per million.The article goes on to say that the First Lady's spokesman stated that the garden would continue, and that the lead level was acceptable. There is no information yet as to whether the lead levels in the soil are naturally occurring or the result of some man-made phenomenon. If anyone sees a Daily Kos post that accuses George W. Bush of personally dumping lead on the White House lawn, please link to it.
"But even though lead levels in the first garden are far below that danger zone, the disclosure is awkward for a White House which has made prominent use of the vegetable garden to define Michelle Obama's role as First Lady,and to encourage sensible eating habits in children."
4 Comments:
By 
, at
Wed Jul 08, 05:22:00 PM:
Years ago John Stossel did a segment on some lead mine tailings in Colorado. The ppm was so high that the tailings were slated for superfund cleanup. The EPA parasite in charge said there "would be dead bodies everywhere" if the site was not cleaned up. Contradicting that hysteria was the fact that local kids had been playing on the pile for years and the levels of lead in their bodies was a fraction of a percentage of average kids in the USA. Bottom line is everything the EPA says has a political agenda behind it. Science doesn't come into play. If one is worried about soil lead levels, it would be best to consult a credible source.
By 
Purple Avenger, at
Wed Jul 08, 06:01:00 PM:
A lot of federal sites are toxic stews.
By , at
Wed Jul 08, 06:08:00 PM:
"A lot of federal sites are toxic stews. "...Like, for instance, the capitol building. The level of toxicity in that edifice is immeasurable. Amazingly, the toxicity evaporates during the various holidays.
By , at
Wed Jul 08, 06:44:00 PM:
These experiments in socialized food production should continue. The fact that some food is not as good and healthy as others is not so much a concern as it is that there be almost enough. We need not worry about the children. The lead laced vegetables will only be sent to older people who have already lived the best of their lives and are going to die pretty soon anyway. In this way also food will be affordable to all.
M.E.
