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E-M:/ Lead paint makers are found guilty

Title: Lead paint makers are found guilty
A landmark lawsuit in Rhode Island holds paint companies responsible for lead contamination there.
This is an important precedent for other states to watch.  The verdict will likely result in additional funds for remediation of lead-contaminated homes.

According to the State of Michigan: Lead poisoning is one of the most common environmental child health problems and affects as many as 20,000 children under the age of six in Michigan.  If undetected, lead poisoning can cause permanent developmental disabilities, brain damage, even death.  Children encounter lead by ingesting lead paint chips, dust from household remodeling projects, or through lead contamination found in water and soil."

In 2003, the Granholm Administration launched a significant effort to reduce childhood lead poisoning through greater coordination, testing and remediation. 

Three Lead Paint Makers Are Found Guilty

 By ERIC TUCKER, Associated Press Writer
 
Three former makers of lead paint created a public nuisance that continues to poison children, a jury decided Wednesday in the state's landmark lawsuit against the companies.
The verdict means the companies that once made lead paint and pigment could be held responsible for millions of dollars in cleanup and mitigation costs, though the state never put a dollar value on its lawsuit.
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The state argued that lead paint created a sweeping public nuisance that has poisoned tens of thousands of children since the early 1990s and contaminated hundreds of thousands of homes.
The sale of lead paint was banned in the United States in 1978 after studies showed it can cause serious health problems in children. But in Rhode Island, which has an old housing stock, lead paint still exists in many homes.
In 1999, Rhode Island became the first state to sue the lead paint industry.
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The state wants the companies to pay for a program that would include home inspections, lead paint removal or abatement and public education. It did not estimate a cost.

and from the Boston Globe
Lead paint ruling could lead to more lawsuits, experts say
By Eric Tucker, Associated Press Writer  |  February 23, 2006
PROVIDENCE, R.I. --A jury's decision to hold three former lead paint makers liable for creating a public nuisance could spark more lawsuits nationwide and force the companies to make hugely expensive repairs, advocates, analysts and lawyers said Thursday.
The tiniest state in the nation broke ground Wednesday by becoming the first state to win a lawsuit over the dangers of the companies' products. But some experts said the win doesn't necessarily guarantee spectacular lead paint verdicts in the future or a scenario like what happened after states sued tobacco companies and received billions of dollars.
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