Pueblo superfund site again tests high for lead

An initial round of lead testing has been completed in Pueblo’s Eilers Neighborhood.

According to the EPA, nearly a quarter of the 279 yards tested South and East of the Steel Mill came back high for lead levels.

The Colorado Smelter superfund site, which contains Eilers and the surrounding areas, was established years ago to address high levels of lead and arsenic left over from the Steel Mill.

The yards recently tested were above the 400 parts per million range. And this is just the first of what will be 1,900 homes tested.

“You know the good thing about lead contamination is there are things you can do, like taking your shoes off before you come inside, housekeeping, wet mopping,” said Charlie Partridge, E.P.A. Toxicologist.

The EPA is still determining what threshold of lead will trigger a cleanup at the Eilers site.

But 400 parts per million was the standard used a decade ago at a superfund site in Denver.