Cleansing flood

Katrina as one big lead remediation project.

It would have been hard to imagine that the foul layer of muck coating much of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina would have done anyone any good, but it seems that all that mud may ultimately have improved public health.

The infusion of new sediment, combined with the extra dirt brought in later to help raise homes throughout the city, appears to have contributed to a dramatic decline in the amount of lead found in both soil and blood samples, according to a new study published in the journal Environment International.

It’s not all good news. There's still a lot of lead in the soil. Especially in the "up and coming" parts of town.