The Naugatuck Valley Health District is offering grant funded money to help Valley homeowners and property owners remove lead-based paint hazards with a program called Naugatuck Valley Emends Lead Hazards (NauVEL).
NVHD is committed to protecting children from lead poisoning and making homes in the Naugatuck Valley lead safe and healthy.
This grant funded money will help to protect children before they are poisoned by lead hazards or injured by safety hazards in their homes.
In 1978 lead based paint was banned in the United States but lead exposure and poisoning is still a reoccurring problem for children.
Lead poisoning is caused by swallowing or breathing in lead dust that is created by chipped and cracked lead paint or on high friction services such as doors and windows. The Centers for Disease Control states that no level of lead exposure is safe for children. Even low levels can be very dangerous for a child’s developing brain, causing reduced cognitive ability and attention span, impaired aptitude for learning and an increased risk for behavioral problems.
Elevated blood lead levels can cause irreversible medical problems including hearing, speech, kidney, and brain damage. In adults, lead poisoning can cause high-blood pressure, nerve disorders, memory problems, muscle and joint pain, fertility and other problems that are lifelong.
Carol W. Slajda, program manager for NauVEL, said “Lead poisoning is 100 percent preventable but, once a child has been poisoned, there is permanent damage and the cost of care is exponential.”
With education and intervention to remove lead from the home, lifetime health and behavior issues can be avoided.
Lead hazard interventions are currently underway in multiple towns including, but not limited to, Naugatuck, Seymour, and Ansonia. One of the most impressive renovations to date is in Beacon Falls.
A total of $33,000 in grant funds were provided for lead safe interventions with minimal cash output by the owner.
This two-unit home built in 1920 was abated for asbestos, insulated replacement windows were installed, and new screen doors were added. Additionally, interior home improvements as well as repairs to the front and back porches with new safe home railings.
The improvements to this home were all made possible by the grant funds provided to NauVEL by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
If you are interested in protecting your family, your renters and your investment please apply today, you may qualify for*:
- Generous financial assistance to remediate all hazards
- Free inspections
- Plans for lead and home safety hazard removal
- Relocation assistance during construction
- Up to $15,000 per unit of free money to keep your family and tenants safe!!**
- Remediation may include but is not limited to interior repairs, energy-saving windows, doors and more!
Homes must be pre-1978 and in Ansonia, Beacon Falls, Derby, Naugatuck, Seymour, or Shelton.
Remember if you are renovating a pre-1978 home you must use an EPA, RRP certified contractor.
Please make your New Year’s Resolution to have a lead safe home, for more information on the NauVEL Program and/or to find out if you qualify, apply at www.nvhd.org/nauvel or call 203-881-3255.
Additional information on making your home a Healthy Home is available at https://www.hud.gov/healthyhomes.
NauVEL is a partner of Connecticut Children’s Healthy Homes Program.
*Other eligibility requirements include but are not limited to- privately owned housing, occupant income less than 80 percent of area median income and for owner-occupant properties a child under six must reside or spend significant time in the unit.
**Some restrictions may apply
This is a press release from the Naugatuck Valley Health District.
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