Intermountain Sustainability Summit
March 18, 2021
Flash Session
SoilSHOP: Engaging the Community and Making Connections
Presented by: Kim Bartels, US Environmental Protection Agency; and Mark Anderson, Denver Health Community Health Services
Lead and other heavy metals are common soil contaminants in urban areas and continue to be an environmental health risk in the U.S., especially lead exposures for young children. The growing trend of urban and community gardening poses new opportunities and challenges. In 2011, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) with partner agencies including EPA, created the original Soil Kitchen, now known as soilSHOP. SoilSHOP is a community engagement and health education event to promote lead awareness by offering free soil testing for lead to educate people about lead exposure and provide information about gardening best practices. The intent of these events is to promote community health protection as urban agriculture practices expand in metropolitan areas and reach underserved communities to support health activities at Brownfields, Superfund, and other sites with heavy metals in the soil. Gardening is an activity that can safely continue during the pandemic and healthy gardening starts with healthy soil. During this presentation, attendees will hear about soilSHOP events that have been held around the country and more recently in Colorado communities and learn more about how their organization could plan a socially distanced soilSHOP event to actively engage with community members.
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