Thank you to everyone who joined us on Saturday, February 22, 2025 for a day filled with free soil lead screening, soil nutrients testing, a water conservation workshop, and more!
The event took place at Urban Tilth North Richmond Farm, where attendees connected with fellow urban farmers and learned from experts to optimize their urban farming potential. We appreciate your participation and support!
Free Soil Screening: Dig - Bring - Learn!
SoilSHOP at the Urban Farm Fair, @Urban Tilth 323 Brookside Dr, Richmond, CA
Saturday February 22, 2025, 10 am - 2pm
Look for our booth!
Dig Collect soil samples from your home garden or kids' play area for free testing at the SoilSHOP. We can test up to 3 soil samples per household. These instructions will help you sample right:
BRING Bring your soil samples with you to the Urban Farm Fair event on 2/22/25 at Urban Tilth. Look for our booth!
LEARN You will get same-day soil screening results during a personalized conversation with a health educator. Learn best practices to avoid lead exposure, tips for safer gardening, and information about blood lead testing in your community.
If parents are concerned about child lead exposure, we can recommend blood lead testing for children. A blood lead test is the best way to find out if a child has lead poisoning. We can refer kids to a blood lead screening test.
Lead and children’s health Lead is a naturally occurring metal that can cause negative health effects. People are exposed to lead by eating lead chips, ingesting contaminated food or water, and or by breathing in lead dust. Children younger than 6 years are more likely to be exposed to lead dust due to their hand to mouth behavior. Because of their developing nervous system, children younger than 6 years old are particularly vulnerable to the effects of lead exposure since lead is easily absorbed in their nervous system.
No safe blood lead level (BLL) in children has been identified and even low levels of lead in blood can cause developmental delays, difficulty learning, behavioral issues, and neurological damage.
The effects of lead poisoning can be permanent and disabling.
Soil, gardening, and your health Lead can be found in the soil of some gardens. It can come from industrial sites, hobbies, or activities like home automotive repair or making fishing sinkers or ammunition, or from historic, widespread use of leaded paint and gasoline. SoilSHOPs are community events to offer free soil lead screenings and health education about soil lead contamination to residents.
Our collaborative partners serving the community with SoilSHOP