Response To Homeowners' Lead Dust Concerns Highlights Holes in System

"The dust was thick enough that Sally Dworak-Fisher could trace letters in it with her finger.

She feared that particles from rehab work next door were drifting into her Federal Hill home and coating many surfaces — even under the bathroom sink.

But when she and other neighbors of the property contacted federal, state and local authorities about concerns that dust at the Henrietta Street house might contain toxic lead, everyone said some other agency was responsible.

The residents' complaints, made earlier this month, demonstrate a breakdown at every level of government in the enforcement of laws and regulations meant to protect the public from the hazards of lead-based paint."

Liz F. Kay and Timothy B. Wheeler report for the Baltimore Sun June 28, 2011.