The total number of children with lead poisoning in the state of Michigan and in the city of Detroit under the age of 6 has experience an overall decrease since 1998, according to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. In 2014, according to the data, there were 2,050 children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels between 5-9 ug/dL, a significant drop from the previous year’s number of 4,793 . Of the number children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels between 5-9 ug/dL in the state of Michigan in 2014, 71 percent (1,462 children) were from the city of Detroit, according to the data (2015 data for the state of Michigan is not yet available). Some preliminary data from State for Detroit is shown in the charts below, but it is preliminary and not discussed above.

Also in 2014 there were 672 children in the state of Michigan with blood lead levels above 10 ug/dL; this was an increase of 19 from the previous year. Of the 672 children, 54 percent (323 children) of those children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels above 10 ug/dL were from the city of Detroit. Of the data provided, in 1998 the state had the highest number of children with blood lead levels between 5-9 ug/dL at 24,563; this also holds true for children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels above 10 ug/dL. In 1998 there were 7,144 children under the age of 6 with lead levels above 10 ug/dL. At the Detroit level, 1998 also had the highest number of children with blood lead levels between 5-9 ug/dL and above 10 ug/dL. There were 12,305 children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels between 5-9 ug/dL in the city of Detroit in 1998; this was 50 percent of the children state wide. Also in 1998, there were 5,002 children from Detroit under the age of 6 with blood lead levels above 10 ug/dL; the number of Detroit children who tested at the level made up 70 percent of the state total for children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels above 10 ug/dL.

While the number of children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels between 5-9 ug/dL decreased between 1998 and 2014 for the state and the city of Detroit, the percentage of the children from Detroit who made up the state total has increased (50% to 71%). The number of children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels above 10 ug/dL also decreased between 1998 and 2014 in the state and the city of Detroit, as did the percentage of Detroit children who made up the state total.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, 5 ug/dL is used a reference level by experts “to identify children with blood lead levels that are much higher than most children’s levels.” The CDC has recommended that public health actions be initiated in children under age 6 with blood lead levels above 5 micrograms per deciliter (µg/dL).1 Babies and young children can be more highly exposed to lead because they often put their hands and other objects that can have lead from dust or soil on them into their mouths.

The total number of children with lead poisoning in the state of Michigan and in the city of Detroit under the age of 6 has experience an overall decrease since 1998, according to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. In 2014, according to the data, there were 2,050 children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels between 5-9 ug/dL, a significant drop from the previous year’s number of 4,793 . Of the number children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels between 5-9 ug/dL in the state of Michigan in 2014, 71 percent (1,462 children) were from the city of Detroit, according to the data (2015 data for the state of Michigan is not yet available). Some preliminary data from State for Detroit is shown in the charts below, but it is preliminary and not discussed above.

Also in 2014 there were 672 children in the state of Michigan with blood lead levels above 10 ug/dL; this was an increase of 19 from the previous year. Of the 672 children, 54 percent (323 children) of those children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels above 10 ug/dL were from the city of Detroit. Of the data provided, in 1998 the state had the highest number of children with blood lead levels between 5-9 ug/dL at 24,563; this also holds true for children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels above 10 ug/dL. In 1998 there were 7,144 children under the age of 6 with lead levels above 10 ug/dL. At the Detroit level, 1998 also had the highest number of children with blood lead levels between 5-9 ug/dL and above 10 ug/dL. There were 12,305 children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels between 5-9 ug/dL in the city of Detroit in 1998; this was 50 percent of the children state wide. Also in 1998, there were 5,002 children from Detroit under the age of 6 with blood lead levels above 10 ug/dL; the number of Detroit children who tested at the level made up 70 percent of the state total for children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels above 10 ug/dL.

While the number of children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels between 5-9 ug/dL decreased between 1998 and 2014 for the state and the city of Detroit, the percentage of the children from Detroit who made up the state total has increased (50% to 71%). The number of children under the age of 6 with blood lead levels above 10 ug/dL also decreased between 1998 and 2014 in the state and the city of Detroit, as did the percentage of Detroit children who made up the state total.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, 5 ug/dL is used a reference level by experts “to identify children with blood lead levels that are much higher than most children’s levels.” The CDC has recommended that public health actions be initiated in children under age 6 with blood lead levels above 5 micrograms per deciliter (µg/dL).1 Babies and young children can be more highly exposed to lead because they often put their hands and other objects that can have lead from dust or soil on them into their mouths.

According to 2014 data from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, the Detroit zip codes of 48204 (where Grand River Ave. and Joy Road both cross Livernois), 48206 (just west of New Center), 48211 (just east of Hamtramck) and 48214 (West Village/Indian Village area) had the highest estimated percentages (between 16.4% and 21.1%) of children with an elevated blood lead level >/=5 ug/dL . According to the Centers for Disease Control, 5 ug/dL is used a reference level by experts “to identify children with blood lead levels that are much higher than most children’s levels.” The CDC has recommended that public health actions be initiated in children under age 6 with blood lead levels above 5 micrograms per deciliter (µg/dL).1 Babies and young children can be more highly exposed to lead because they often put their hands and other objects that can have lead from dust or soil on them into their mouths.2

Of the 30 zip codes in the city of Detroit, seven had 4.5 percent or less of children test with an elevated blood lead level of >/=5 ug/dL. Of these zip codes, and all the Detroit zip codes, 48201 (which is the Midtown/Cass Corridor section of Detroit) had the highest percentage of children tested for lead poisoning in 2014. In Midtown/Cass Corridor area, 58.4 percent of the children were tested for lead poisoning.

Lead is a heavy metal that accumulates in the body when ingested, and has toxic effects on the nervous system, cognitive development, and blood production. A child can get lead poisoning from two main sources: deteriorating lead based paint, airborne lead based particles that can be inhaled as dust. Deteriorating lead-based paint is especially hazardous when found on surfaces that children can chew or that get a lot of wear-and-tear, such as windows and window sills, doors and door frames, stairs, railings, banisters, and porches.3 Air-borne lead paint particle dust, does not necessarily have to be inhaled, but can also settle in nearby soil and on porches, windowsills and stairs and can therefore also increase risk of being ingested by children as they crawl or play.4 A lead dust equivalent of only three grains of sugar can begin to poison a child.5

The main target for lead is the nervous system. Even very low levels of lead in the blood of children can result in permanent damage to the brain and nervous system leading to lifelong behavior and learning problems.6 Estimates show a 2.6-point decrease in IQ level for every 10 µg/dL increase in blood lead and studies have found that significant damage occurs even at BLLs below 5 µg/dL.7 I In addition, lead poisoned kids are seven times more likely to drop out of high school.8 Locally, about 60 percent of DPS students who performed below their grade level on 2008 standardized tests had elevated lead levels.8

Lead poisoning can also result in inattentiveness, hyperactivity, disorganization, aggression, increased risk of delinquency.9 Studies have shown, higher childhood blood lead levels are consistently associated with higher adult arrest rates for violent crimes.10 For every 5 µg/dL increase in blood lead levels, the risk of being arrested for a violent crime as a young adult increased by almost 50%.11

There is no current effective treatment of children with elevated blood lead levels.7

1. CDC: Lead (http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/)
2. United States Environmental Protection Agency. (2013). http://www2.epa.gov/lead/learn-about-lead#lead
3. United States Environmental Protection Agency. (2013). http://www2.epa.gov/lead/protect-your-family#sl-home
4. Farfel, M., Orlova, A., Lees, P., Rohde, C., Ashley, P., and Chisolm, J. “A Study of Urban Housing Demolitions as Sources of Lead in Ambient Dust: Demolition Practices and Exterior Dust Fall.” Environmental Health Perspectives Vol. 111, Issue 5 (2003): 1228-1234).
5. Olden, K., PhD. “Environmental Risks to the Health of American Children.” Preventative Medicine 22 (1993): 576-578.
6. 6. United States Environmental Protection Agency. (2013). http://epa.gov/lead/learn-about-lead#lead
7. Zhang, N., Baker, H.W., Tufts, M., Raymond, R.E., Salihu, H., & Elliott, M.R. (2013).  Early Childhood Lead Exposure and Academic Achievement: Evidence from Detroit Public Schools, 2008-2010.  American Journal of Public Health, 103(3), e72-e77.
8. Lam, T. and Tanner-White, K. “High lead levels hurt learning for DPS kids.” Detroit Free Press (May 16, 2010).
9. Zubrzycki, J. “Lead-Exposure Problems Spotlighted in Detroit.” Education Weekly Vol. 32, Issue 5 (2012): 6-9.
10. 10. Drum, K. “America’s Real Criminal Element: Lead.” Mother Jones (Jan. 3, 2013).

11 Wright, J. et al. “Association of Prenatal and Childhood Blood Lead Concentrations with Criminal Arrests in Early Adulthood.”

The ongoing demographic changes in urban and suburban communities present a challenging task for cultural organizations. Unlike more dynamic creative industries (media firms, telecommunications, law and other consulting firms) that often have the capacity to choose their location, most cultural organizations rely heavily on fixed capital that ties them to their historic locations. The majority of long-standing cultural organizations (history and natural history museums, opera, ballet, symphony, art museums) were established in certain geographic locations (mostly urban centers) by elites from former generations at the time of the Industrial Revolution or during periods or urban prosperity and growth. In post-industrial cities, such as Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Detroit, many of these institutions face severe survival and sustainability pressures due to the overall economic decline, reduction in the attendance rates, increased competition for funding with other organizations, and the aging of their core audiences and supporters. The problem of audience decline is particularly salient in areas with high population diversity, as well as areas that lack proper infrastructure to provide access to cultural resources for traditionally underserved populations.

In response to these issues, the Center for Urban Studies has been conducting research on exploring the locational patterns of cultural organizations in Southeast Michigan. The study is being conducted in collaboration with the Wayne State University’s Assistant Professor of Political Science Alisa Moldavanova, who studies nonprofit organizational sustainability. This study examined the locational patterns of 216 cultural organizations in Southeast Michigan in relation to the social and demographic profile of their communities. The goal is to holistically explore the existing geographical, institutional, and social barriers limiting access to cultural organizations, analyze the public accessibility of these institutions, and develop recommendations regarding improving access to cultural organizations.

As the first step in this study, we have explored the density of cultural organizations’ locations in the seven-county region of Southeast Michigan. Our analysis shows that different types of cultural institutions are unevenly distributed in this geographic area, as seen in the map below. There are areas of cultural districts (high density of particular types of organizations and the overall presence of the sector), and cultural deserts (low density of particular types of organizations and the sector). We see a high concentration of arts and cultural institutions in Detroit, Ann Arbor and near the Bloomfield Hills area. The opposite is true for many of the rural communities in the region and even suburbs bordering the high-density arts and cultural areas like Detroit and Ann Arbor. Newer organizations in this study appeared to select locations with access to donors (and where donors had relocated as the city expanded), creating mini-districts in recent suburbs such as Bloomfield Hills in Oakland County (established 1932), Rochester Hills in Oakland County (established 1984), and Northville in Wayne County (established 1955). This suggests that, as cities and regions have expanded, the original organizational location may no longer serve the institution in the same manner it once did, and may fail to adequately reflect current and future needs of local communities.

As the second step in this study, we have been constructing an index of access to cultural organizations that takes into account admissions policy, the physical characteristics of a location (i.e. travel distance), and the availability of, and access to, transportation. So far, we have applied the index to three selected organizations – the Detroit Institute of Arts, Cranbrook Art Museum and the University of Michigan Art Museum. We analyzed the levels of access to these institutions by different CENSUS tracts. When used in combination with community socio-demographic characteristics, this index, which is displayed in the map below, reveals that certain groups of the population are at a greater disadvantage in terms of their access to cultural amenities. In particular, areas of the lowest access are the most rural, have the greatest number of people with less than Bachelor’s degree, the greatest number of unemployed people, and the lowest median household income. On the contrary, areas with the highest access tend to be urban and suburban. Some have the highest median household income, the lowest percent of unemployment, the least percentage of people in poverty, and the greatest number of seniors, while some of the older urban areas, still have high access because of their proximity to the historic cultural centers. These areas tend to have lower socio economic indicators. The access index, therefore, reveals that, due to access barriers, some organizations may be underutilizing an important community resource – diverse audience, while others like the DIA still provide access to diverse populations. Interestingly, Western Wayne County and south Central Oakland County enjoy relatively high access because of their centrality relative to the three institutions studies here.

In the map below, we see that the areas with the lowest access to the three art museums
(Detroit Institute of Arts, Cranbrook Art Museum and the University of Michigan Art Museum), which have an index score of 2 and are colored in purple, are located in the more rural edges of the region in St. Clair, Livingston, and Monroe counties. One area in the region has the highest access score (9, colored red), and that is the area around Bloomfield Hills. Residents in this area have one the highest median incomes in the region.