For years health officials have held that there is no safe level of lead exposure for humans. Even low levels can cause irreversible cognitive decline in children. Yet despite the risk, leaded aviation fuel—whose particulates travel in the air and are inhaled or can settle in soil or other substrates—continues to be used in small airplanes and helicopters around the country.
Researchers at Oregon State University and Portland State University found high levels of lead at test sites surrounding the Hillsboro and Troutdale airports in Portland, Oregon. The samples contained isotopes linking the lead to that used in single-piston engine aircraft, like helicopters, crop dusters or antique military planes.
“We see lead that’s about seven times higher than lead in other urban areas near these airports,” said Alyssa Shiel, associate professor at Oregon State University and a contributing author of a new study on the health threat. “With something like 19,000 small airports across the country, this is something that needs more attention.”
The article, published this week in Nature Communications Sustainability, reflects a national problem. Single-piston aircraft in the United States continue to use leaded aviation fuel, a pattern that impacts thousands of airports and their surrounding residents.
