County Responds to Lead Poisoning Risks
The M ultnom ah County H ealth D e­
partm ent has sent letters to local area
pediatricians, encouraging them to rec­
ognize lead poisoning as a serious risk to
children and to conduct blood testing
and p reventative education for their
patients at risk.
The m ailing was in response to a re­
cent study conducted by the H ealth
Department, w hich showed a high preva­
lence o f lead hazards in many Portland-
area hom es.
In addition, the EPA recently an­
nounced new, more stringent national
standards to identify dangerous levels
o f lead in paint, dust, and soil. T hese
standards are even more protective than
those used for the county’s study. For
the first time, parents, landlords, and
childcare providers will have specific
levels on w hich to make inform ed deci­
sions regarding lead found in th eir
hom es, yards, or play areas.
T he H ealth D epartm ent study found
that 71 percent o f homes in N orth and
inner-N ortheast and Southeast neigh­
borhoods had household dust that con­
tained lead exceeding the federal stan­
dards. T w enty-one percent o f these
homes had yard soil that contained lead
above the federal standard.
“Even a low level o f lead exposure can
dam age the brain and nervous system,
causing learning disabilities, hearing
loss, speech and behavioral problem s,
and other serious health effects,” states
L illia n S h irle y , M ultnom ah C ounty
H ealth Departm ent Director.
The Centers for D isease Control esti­
mates that nearly one million A m erican
children under the age o f six have d a n ­
gerously elevated levels o f lead in their
blood. The H ealth Department study sug­
gest that thousands o f children living in
M ultnom ah C ounty are at risk o f lead
poisoning due to dangerous levels o f
lead in their homes.
To learn more about the C ounty’s Lead
Prevalence Study, the E P A ’s new sta n ­
dards, childhood lead poisoning p re­
vention, and inform ation on local lead
p ro g ra m s a n d s e r v ic e s , c a ll th e
M u ltn o m a h
C o u n ty
H e a lth
D epartment’s LeadLine at 503-988-4000.
Spanish, Russian, and V ietnam ese inter­
preters are available as needed. The Lead
Poisoning Prevention Program is funded
through a partnership w ith the C ity o f
Portland W ater Bureau and B ureau o f
Housing and Com m unity D evelopm ent.
IS,
^ n rtta tìb
Volume XXXI
Number 10
www.portlandobserver.com
Wednesday
Committed to Cultural Diversity
Established in 1970
50*
March 7,2001
St. Johns Bridge Due
For Major Repairs
4
Portland kids involved in a local bicycling group surround the legendary runner Alberto Salazar during the dedication o f the Lance
Armstrong Fitness Center on the Nike campus. The kids also got a chance to meet Armstrong, the Tour de France bicycling champion.
BIKE Meets Tour deFrance Winner
The kidsofB.I.K .E, aPortl and nonprofit
group that uses bicycles to help inner-city
kids develop life skills, met the current Tour
de France Champion while attending the
dedication o f the Lance Armstrong Fitness
Center on the Nike campus.
At the invitation o f the Nike Foundation,
about 20children traveled to N ik e’s World
Headquarters in Beaverton for the event.
Just minutes after arriving on campus,
the kids met former world class marathon
runner Alberto Salazar, who was also on
hand for the dedication. Salazar spent time
talking with all the kids before they headed
to the Mia Hamm cafeteria for a free lunch.
Nike executive Howard White and CEO
Phil Knight warmed up the crowd with
words o f praise for Armstrong and his
accomplishments. The kids were then
treated to an inspirational - and sometimes
tearful - speech by Armstrong, a man who
beat cancer and returned to cycling to win
the w ord’s toughest bike race in both 1999
and 2000. After the speech, the children
had a chance to shake Armstrong’s hand
and soak up some o f the two -tim e Tour de
France cham p’s hearty spirit. Armstrong
also signed autographs on magazine cov­
ers and on the yellow jerseys that many of
the children wore to the event. The once-in-
a-lifetime opportunity ended with a per­
sonalized tour o f the new Lance Armstrong
Fitness Center.
I
Old Farmer’s
Almanac (Almost)
Predicted Quake
The venerable Old Farmer’s Almanac was
just one day off from predicting the 6.8 magni­
tude earthquake that rocked the Pacific North­
west Wednesday, Feb. 28.
According to the book’s 2001 edition calen­
dar, the possibility o f seismic activity was high
on Feb 26 and 27 because the moon was on the
celestial equator, a line at 0 degree declination
that separates the northern and southern celes­
tial hemispheres.
“But what they often overlook is how the
moon can effect the land. Differentpositionsof
the moon can often cause lifting and shifting o f
the Earth’s crust to a significant degree, thus
causing seismic activity. Perhaps, one day, by
using this and other scientific methods, warn­
ing will be available before a large, devastating
quake occurs.”
Urban Landscape to Grow
neighborhood. Thanks to Friends o f Trees and many other hard-working volunteers, 128
trees have been planted in recent days in both the King and Humboldt neighborhoods
tal Tuesday, a day after undergoing a sur­
gical procedure to repair a damaged artery.
The vice president walked out ofG eorge
W ashington University Hospital, shook
hands with his doctors and was driven
away. “Good,” he said in response to a
reporter’s shouted question about how he
felt.
Aftershock Hits
Northwest
Cheney Leaves Hospital
Tuesday, Feels 'Good*
W ASHINGTON — Vice President
Dick Cheney was released from the hospi­
SEA TTLE — A pow erful earthquake
rocked the N orthw est, shattering w in­
dow s, show ering bricks onto sidew alks
and injuring at least 250 people. A 3.4-
m agnitude aftershock caused no further
damage.
Bush Sends Congress $2
Trillion Budget
W ASHINGTON — President Bush
sent Congress a $ 1.96 trillion budget that
would curtail spending in programs rang­
ing from farm aid to transportation while
using ballooning surpluses to provide
Americans with a $ 1.6 trillion tax cut over
10 years.
Russia, Vietnam Expand
Strategic Ties
H A N O I, Vietnam — The leaders o f
R ussia and Vietnam signed a deal ex­
panding strategic ties, a m ove that re­
unites Hanoi with its one-tim e com m u­
A Traffic M anagement Plan that
calls for nighttim e closures and re­
stricted one-lane day traffic has been
outlined for the St. Johns Bridge Re­
habilitation Project.
Construction on the bridge is ex­
pected to begin in early summer 2002,
and continue through fall 2004.
The Oregon Departm ent o f T rans­
portation m ust entirely replace the
concrete deck and sidew alks, up­
grade the bridge drainage and light­
ing system s, and im prove the Bridge
Avenue ramps on the west side o f
the W illam ette River.
The bridge will also have to be
encapsulated to prevent environm en­
tal contamination while rust and lead-
based paint are rem oved and new
lead-free, corrosion-inhibiting paint
is applied to the bridge’s metal parts.
ODOT and city of Portland traffic
engineers and representatives o f Tri-
Met, the Port o f Portland and the St.
Johns and Linnton communities have
been involved in a Technical Advi­
sory Committee to help develop the
plan for managing traffic during con­
struction.
The committee recently recom ­
mended that bridge traffic be re­
duced to one eastbound and one
westbound travel lane during the
day, with full nighttim e closure dur­
ing the deck replacement.
This phase of construction is ex­
pected to take approximately eight
months to complete. The committee
recom mended that two travel lanes
be kept open 24-hours-a-day for the
rem ainder of the approximately two-
year project.
About 125 people attended an open
house to review the plans last week.
nist benefactor and gives M oscow its
strongest ally in Southeast Asia. Vladimir
P utin’s visit, the first by a Russian or
Soviet leader despite a half-century o f
diplom atic ties, was lauded by V ietnam -
ese leaders and the state-co n tro lled
press.
ready to do more to prevent the faltering
economy from skidding into a recession.
Greenspan Says
Slowdown Not Over Yet
LONDON — Britain awoke to headlines
proclaiming “panic” and “chaos" in a coun­
tryside crippled by the livestock virus.
Cases o f the highly contagious disease
have climbed from seven to 12 to 18. Britain
extended a ban on livestock m ovements
for two more weeks, and the European
Union lengthened its ban on British ex­
ports o f live animals, meat and dairy prod­
ucts.
WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve
Chairman Alan Greenspan, delivering a
sober assessment o f the U.S. economy,
told Congress that the sharp slowdown
that began in the second half o f last year
“has yet to run its full course." Greenspan’s
comments sent a clear signal that the Fed is
1
Livestock Virus Causes
Countryside Panic in
Britain
1