Emory Researchers Knock On Doors Across Atlanta’s Westside To Warn About Lead Contamination

Emory professor Eri Saikawa talked Tuesday about research that sparked an EPA soil contamination cleanup throughout Atlanta’s westside neighborhood.

Lily Oppenheimer / WABE

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has been digging up soil contaminated with lead throughout Atlanta’s westside neighborhood.

The area being investigated spans across roughly 35 city blocks and covers more than 360 properties, according to an EPA spokeswoman.

But that federal investigation and soil cleanup was kick-started by an Emory University doctoral student in 2018 and a research team led by professor Eri Saikawa.