Neighbours to a contaminated North Dunedin home are being warned to protect their children from possible lead poisoning, after the Otago Regional Council conceded the problem was worse than previously believed.
Soil test results released to the Otago Daily Times this week showed lead contamination was "widespread" across the property at 57 Selwyn St, Northeast Valley, ORC resource management director Dr Selva Selvarajah said.
Concentrations of lead at the property were also higher than previously recorded, at nearly five times the recommended safe level for residential use.
Dr Selvarajah said the results raised doubts about the source of the contamination, and he could not rule out the possibility other neighbouring properties were also contaminated.
He said parents with young children living near the property needed to be aware of the possible threat to their children's health.
The risk of illness from eating vegetables grown in soil that could be contaminated was "pretty low", but parents should stop young children from eating soil that could be contaminated, he said.
The Ministry of Health warned that children aged under 5 were "particularly at risk" of lead poisoning from placing contaminated objects, including soil, in their mouths.
"The major risk is any young children ingesting contaminated soil . . .
"That's something people have to be aware of to ensure they avoid that situation," Dr Selvarajah said.
"Whether the contamination has spread into other properties is something we need to think about.
"It's hard to rule it out at this stage when the contamination is this widespread."
Council staff had asked for more advice from the Ministry of Health about the risks posed by the contamination and how best to deal with it, and that advice would be passed on to the tenants at 57 Selwyn St within days, ORC support services manager Gerard Collings said.
It would be up to the tenants to decide whether to leave the property.
They had already received offers of assistance.
Dr Selvarajah said soil tests for contamination at surrounding properties needed to be considered.
One of the tenants said, when contacted, she was angry at the predicament her family was now facing.
Tarlene, who would not give her last name, was one of three adults living at the home, including partner Brett Cook (24), along with her three daughters, aged 7, 3 and 1.
She was waiting for blood-test results for her 3-year-old daughter before deciding what to do, but also planned to seek legal advice.
"We are still in shock that this is all happening to us," she said.
Blood tests already had found no sign of lead poisoning in her 1-year-old daughter, Azariah, but it was her 3-year-old daughter who spent the most time digging in the garden.
Tarlene said she would "never have moved in" had she been told of the contamination.
