Dozens near battery plant lead poisoned


China.org.cn, May 6, 2011

Dozens of people living near a factory that makes batteries for motorcycles in Zhejiang province have been found to have dangerously high levels of lead in their blood, Xinhua reported Thursday .

The father of Tian Suwan on Wednesday shows a blood test result for his daughter. The test said she had 484 micrograms of lead per liter of blood.

Some people in Xinshi Town of Deqing County have excessive blood lead levels, according to medical tests carried out since March, the county's information office said. And the local government sent an investigation team to the battery factory yesterday.

Zhejiang Haijiu Battery Co Ltd had been ordered to suspend its operations.

In Mengxi village, which is within the jurisdiction of Xinshi town, medical tests showed that 19 children, including a 5-month-old baby, were among those with excessive lead in their blood. The total number of people affected has not been made public and many more people are undergoing tests, according to Rong Weiguo, a worker at the factory for the past three years.

Rong's 4-year-old son and a nephew and niece are among those who were found to have high levels of lead in their systems. The three children all have at least 293 micrograms of lead per liter of blood, which far exceeds the normal level of 100 micrograms.

The three children were sent to a hospital in Shanghai on Wednesday for further tests and treatment, said Rong.

Some adults, including factory workers and villagers, also had excessive lead levels, with the highest being 590 micrograms of lead per liter of blood, said a worker surnamed Chen.

Excessive amounts of lead in the blood can damage the digestive, nervous, and reproductive systems and cause anemia and convulsions.

Environmental protection officials collected samples of soil, water, vegetables and grain from areas surrounding the plant on April 30. Test results have not been released.

Haijiu Battery's deputy general manager Zhao Guogen said: "Our company will foot the sick children's medical bills."

Haijiu Battery, which was founded in May 2003, mainly produces lead-acid batteries for motorcycles. It employs about 1,000 people and has an annual output of 9 million batteries.

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