Community Health
Outreach
Let's Talk About Exide

Recent Updates

About Community Health Outreach

The Los Angeles County Health Agency and the Department of Public Health are continuing outreach efforts to support residents in the communities affected by the release of hazardous materials from Exide Technologies, the former battery recycling facility in the city of Vernon.

With the support of Supervisor Hilda L. Solis, the Department of Public Health led an unprecedented effort on June 10, 2017, to conduct a door-to-door community outreach event to homes within 1.7 miles from the Exide facility. Outreach teams visited households in Bell, Boyle Heights, Commerce, Maywood, East Los Angeles, Huntington Park and Vernon to conduct a health survey to understand the concerns and needs of residents and provide health education materials and resources.

Lead Paint Cleanup in Communities Impacted

The Department of Public Health is dedicating newly available funds to provide free lead paint repair to qualifying homes in communities impacted by Exide. As DTSC completes their soil cleanup, DPH will aid residents by identifying and mitigating lead paint hazards in high risk homes, prioritizing those occupied first by children with elevated blood lead levels, followed by other young children and pregnant women. For more information, please check our Free Lead Paint Cleanup for Qualifying Homes Flyer - English , List of Lead Safe Housing Units , and General Map of Target Area . To see if your home qualifies, please contact Los Angeles County Development Authority at (626) 586-1959

Steps to Lower Risk of Lead Exposure

Tips for communities near the Exide Technologies battery recycling plant in Vernon, CA

• Wash hands and toys often
  • Lower hand-to-mouth transfer of lead dust or soil by washing your children's hands after
• Playing outside, before eating, and at bedtime. Wash their toys often. Do not let children play on bare soil
  • Playing on grass or sand can lower exposure to bare soils that may have lead.
  • Watch your children play outside and avoid contact with bare soil.
  • Do not let children eat bare soil.
• Take off shoes before coming into your home
  • This helps to lower the chance of bringing lead into your home.
• Also note that pets may bring lead into the home from the soil outside
  • Wash lead tainted clothes separately.
• Request a free blood lead test, call the Blood Lead Screening Hotline: 1-800-LA-4-LEAD(1-800-524-5323)
  • Free blood lead testing is available to any person who lives, works, or goes to school in the communities near Exide. All results are confidential. If you have more lead-related questions, call: 1-800-LA-4-LEAD(1-800-524-5323)

Resources

• Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program (CLPPP): call 1-800-LA-4-LEAD (1-800-524-5323) or email lead@ph.lacounty.gov
• Toxicology & Environmental Assessment's Community Hotline: call (213) 738-3232 or email exideoutreach@ph.lacounty.gov
• Enrich Program
  Get support and resources for your child's growth and development Contact Dulce Flores dflores@elafrc.net or call (626)-300-9171