Flint Michigan has made significant headlines in recent months for being the site of what may be the worst public health disaster in recent memory. In a move to lower the cost of its water service, the city exposed its entire population to elevated lead levels and other toxins.

The disaster is remarkable for what appears to be the gross negligence of leaders at both the local and state levels. Despite clear signs that the water in the Flint River was so bad it wasn’t even deemed safe for General Motors to use to wash its car parts, the city declined to spend less than $30,000 to treat the water and seal lead leaching pipes. Now the state faces millions, if not billions, in liability.

Last week, Pennsylvania attracted the attention of reporters for the online news site Vox, which reported that 18 cities in the state had found elevated levels of lead in a far greater percentage of children than in Flint.

Philadelphia was 17th of the 18 cities on that list with elevated lead levels – a count of greater than 5 micrograms per deciliter of blood. According to the report by the Pennsylvania Department of Health, 10.19 percent of Philadelphia children had elevated lead counts in their blood, compared with a rate of 3.21 percent in Flint.

What’s more alarming is that Philadelphia looks good in comparison to many other Pennsylvania cities where elevated lead levels are found in around 20 percent of children. Allentown tops the list with 23.11 percent.

Most experts agree, however, that the source of Pennsylvania’s lead problems is nothing like what it was in Flint. There have not been any confirmed cases of polluted drinking water. The main culprit in Pennsylvania is believed to be dust from lead-based paint in the many, many old homes in Pennsylvania cities.

Philadelphia has a law in place that requires any landlord to certify that a property built before 1978 is lead free before renting it to a tenant. But even with such a law in place, areas of the city with concentrations of older homes have higher instances of lead levels.

In a report cited by a Philadelphia Magazine piece last week, commenting on the Vox reporter’s findings, the highest rates of lead levels were in Center City, West Philadelphia and Roxborough/Manayunk, with Greater Northwest Philadelphia (Chestnut Hill, Mt. Airy and Germantown) and North Philadelphia not far behind.

The good news is that lead does not stay in the blood for long – a child tested with higher than normal levels can see those levels drop if the issue is addressed and live a healthy life. And when the source is paint, there are ways to stop exposure and ensure lead paint is either moved, or safely sealed.

For more information on lead paint and treating it, visit www.phila.gov/health/childhoodlead/

-- Pete Mazzaccaro