Le fait qui frappe
Le même métal traverse l'Empire romain, l'essence automobile et encore aujourd'hui les logements anciens.
Sa toxicité est connue depuis l'Antiquité, mais l'exposition au plomb cause encore 1,5 million de morts par an.
Dossier
Lead : a poison
known since Antiquity
Translation — the French version prevails.
Des conduites romaines à l'essence au plomb, en passant par la céruse des peintres : l'histoire d'un métal dont la toxicité est documentée depuis plus de 2'000 ans, mais dont l'exploitation a été défendue bec et ongles par l'industrie. Voici les faits.
1'500'000deaths per year worldwide (WHO)
Pourquoi ça compte encore dans le bâti
- Peintures anciennes et boiseries
- Canalisations, soudures et châssis
- Radiateurs et revêtements anticorrosion
Antiquity — 18th century
A poison known since Antiquity
Le plomb est l'un des premiers métaux travaillés par l'humanité. Facile à fondre (327 °C), malléable, résistant à la corrosion, il était idéal pour les conduites d'eau, la vaisselle et les cosmétiques. Les Romains l'appelaient plumbum — d'où le mot « plombier » et le symbole chimique Pb.
Mais ses effets toxiques étaient déjà documentés. Dès le IIe siècle av. J.-C., le médecin grec Nikandre de Colophon décrivait les coliques et la paralysie provoquées par le plomb. Au Ier siècle av. J.-C., l'architecte Vitruve mettait en garde contre les conduites en plomb pour l'eau potable.
Les Romains cuisaient le moût de raisin dans des récipients en plomb pour produire le sapa, un sirop sucré utilisé comme édulcorant. L'acide du raisin réagissait avec le plomb pour former de l'acétate de plomb — un « sucre de plomb » au goût agréable mais mortel à long terme. Certains historiens ont émis l'hypothèse que cette consommation massive a contribué au déclin de l'Empire romain.
« Water should not be conveyed through lead pipes if we want it to be wholesome. For it is observed that the complexion of lead workers is pale, because the vapours of lead destroy the vigour of the blood. »
~3500 av. J.-C.Découverte
First known uses of lead
Lead objects are found at archaeological sites in Anatolia (present-day Turkey). Lead, easy to smelt and cast, is used for figurines, weights, and seals.
Source : Archaeological archives
250 av. J.-C.Alerte
Nicander of Colophon describes lead poisoning
The Greek poet and physician Nicander of Colophon describes the colic and paralysis caused by lead in his treatise Alexipharmaca. It is one of the earliest clinical descriptions of saturnism (plumbism).
Source : Nicander of Colophon, Alexipharmaca, 2nd century BC
Ier siècle av. J.-C.Alerte
Vitruvius warns against lead pipes
The Roman architect Vitruvius, in his De Architectura, recommends using earthenware pipes rather than lead for drinking water. He observes that lead workers have "a pale complexion" and deteriorating health. The Latin word plumbum would give rise to "plumber" and the chemical symbol Pb.
Source : Vitruvius, De Architectura, Book VIII
Ier siècleDécouverte
Roman sapa: lead in wine
Romans boil grape must in lead vessels to produce sapa (syrup reduced to one-third) and defrutum (reduced by half). The acid in the grapes reacts with the lead to form lead acetate — a toxic sweetener. The Roman elite consume it daily.
Source : Columella, De Re Rustica; Pliny the Elder, Natural History
IIe siècleDécouverte
Theory of Rome's fall due to lead
Modern historians would hypothesise that the massive use of lead — water pipes, tableware, cosmetics, wine with sapa — contributed to the decline of the Roman Empire through chronic poisoning of the elite. The thesis remains debated, but analysis of Roman skeletons reveals very high lead levels.
Source : Jerome Nriagu, Lead and Lead Poisoning in Antiquity, 1983
1786Alerte
Benjamin Franklin denounces the dangers of lead
In a celebrated letter, Benjamin Franklin describes the effects of lead observed in print shops and distilleries. He notes with bitterness that these dangers had been known for decades, but that "mankind is slow to adopt truths that contradict its habits".
Source : Letter from Benjamin Franklin to Benjamin Vaughan, 1786
19th century — early 20th
White lead : the “lead white” that killed painters
Avec la révolution industrielle, la production de céruse (blanc de plomb) explose. Ce pigment blanc opaque, utilisé depuis l'Antiquité, recouvre désormais les bâtiments, les gares, les ponts, les navires et les logements de toute l'Europe. En France, au XIXe siècle, jusqu'à 50 % des ouvriers des usines de céruse sont hospitalisés chaque année.
Le saturnisme — du nom de Saturne, associé au plomb en alchimie — désigne l'intoxication chronique au plomb. Ses symptômes sont terrifiants : coliques violentes, paralysie des membres, convulsions, encéphalopathie, coma. Les « coliques du peintre » sont une expression courante au XIXe siècle.
En 1897, en Australie, le Dr J. Lockhart Gibson identifie les premiers cas massifs de saturnisme chez des enfants — ils ingèrent les écailles de peinture au plomb qui se détachent des murs et des vérandas. La peinture au plomb deviendra l'une des plus grandes menaces pour la santé infantile du XXe siècle.
1839Alerte
Tanquerel des Planches publishes his treatise on saturnism
The French physician Louis Tanquerel des Planches publishes an exhaustive medical treatise on saturnism (lead poisoning), documenting more than 1,200 clinical cases. He describes lead colic, encephalopathy, and limb paralysis. The work serves as a reference for decades.
Source : Tanquerel des Planches, Traité des maladies de plomb ou saturnines, 1839
1878Industrie
The white-lead industry kills its workers
In France, up to 50% of workers in white-lead (céruse) factories are hospitalised each year for serious poisoning. "Painter's colic" (coliques du peintre) becomes a common expression. Women and children are particularly affected.
Source : Labour Inspectorate reports, France, 19th century
1897Alerte
First cases of children poisoned by lead paint
In Australia, Dr J. Lockhart Gibson identifies mass cases of saturnism in children in Brisbane. He establishes the link between lead-based paints used on verandas and childhood poisoning. Children ingest paint flakes.
Source : J. Lockhart Gibson, Australasian Medical Gazette, 1904
1909Interdiction
France bans white lead in paint
The law of 20 July 1909, supported by Georges Clemenceau, bans the use of white lead (céruse) in all painting works in France. Enforcement is postponed to 1915. Production is not banned — lead continues to be exported.
Source : Law of 20 July 1909, France
1914Suisse
Switzerland bans lead pipes for drinking water
Switzerland bans the use of lead pipes in drinking-water networks. It is one of the first protective measures against lead in the country. However, existing pipes remain in service in many buildings for decades.
Source : Swiss federal legislation, 1914
Health effects of lead
Children
- Irreversible reduction of intelligence quotient (IQ)
- Attention and behavioural disorders
- Psychomotor developmental delays
- Learning and reading difficulties
- Anaemia
- Lead encephalopathy (saturnine encephalopathy) in severe cases
Adults
- Arterial hypertension
- Chronic kidney disease
- Fertility disorders
- Joint pain (saturnine gout)
- Peripheral neuropathy (extensor paralysis / wrist drop)
- Increased risk of cardiovascular disease
The WHO states that there is no safe level of lead exposure. Children are particularly vulnerable because their nervous system is still developing and they absorb proportionally more lead than adults.
The leaded gasoline scandal
Thomas Midgley Jr. : the man who poisoned the atmosphere
En 1921, l'ingénieur Thomas Midgley Jr., travaillant pour General Motors, découvre que le plomb tétraéthyle (TEL) élimine le cliquetis des moteurs à essence. C'est le début d'un des plus grands désastres environnementaux de l'histoire. Midgley inventera également les CFC, responsables de la destruction de la couche d'ozone — un historien le qualifiera de « l'organisme qui a le plus nui à l'atmosphère terrestre ».
En 1924, General Motors, Standard Oil et DuPont créent l'Ethyl Corporation pour produire et commercialiser l'essence au plomb. Le produit est vendu sous la marque « Ethyl » — le mot « plomb » est délibérément évité.
Dès les premiers mois, c'est la catastrophe. À l'usine de Bayway (New Jersey), des dizaines d'ouvriers développent des hallucinations, des convulsions, des psychoses. L'usine est surnommée « la maison des fous ». Au total, 15 ouvriers meurent et des dizaines sont hospitalisés. Midgley répond en versant du TEL sur ses mains et en inhalant ses vapeurs devant les journalistes — il sera lui-même hospitalisé peu après pour intoxication au plomb.
1921Interdiction
International Convention on white lead
The International Labour Organization (ILO) adopts Convention No. 13 banning the use of white lead and lead sulphate in painting. France ratifies it in 1926. The United States refuses to ratify — and still has not done so.
Source : ILO Convention No. 13, 1921
1921Scandale
Thomas Midgley Jr. discovers tetraethyl lead
Engineer Thomas Midgley Jr., working for General Motors, discovers that tetraethyl lead (TEL) eliminates engine knock in petrol. This is the beginning of leaded petrol. Midgley would also invent CFCs, which destroy the ozone layer. A historian would describe him as "the man who did the most harm to the Earth's atmosphere".
Source : Midgley et al., Industrial and Engineering Chemistry, 1922
1924Scandale
Deaths at the Ethyl plant: the hushed-up scandal
General Motors, Standard Oil, and DuPont create the Ethyl Corporation to produce leaded petrol. Within months, dozens of workers at the Bayway plant (New Jersey) develop hallucinations, convulsions, and psychosis. In total, 15 workers die and dozens are hospitalised. The plant is nicknamed "the house of butterflies" (la maison des fous).
Source : New York Times archives, October 1924
1924Scandale
Midgley simulates the safety of TEL before the press
At a press conference, Thomas Midgley Jr. pours tetraethyl lead over his hands and inhales its vapours for 60 seconds to "prove" its harmlessness. In reality, Midgley had himself been hospitalised for lead poisoning shortly beforehand. He was subsequently forced to take convalescent leave.
Source : Press conference, 30 October 1924
1925Scandale
Sales of leaded petrol resume
After a one-year suspension and an inquiry by the Public Health Service led by scientists close to industry, sales of leaded petrol resume in the United States. Robert Kehoe, a physician funded by the Ethyl Corporation, asserts that lead is "naturally present" in the human body — a claim that is false and will not be refuted until decades later.
Source : U.S. Surgeon General Conference, May 1925
The two inventions of Thomas Midgley Jr.
Tetraethyl lead (TEL) — 1921
- Ajouté à l'essence pendant 73 ans
- Contamination de l'atmosphère planétaire entière
- Des centaines de millions de personnes exposées
- 824 millions de points de QI perdus (USA seuls)
Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) — 1930
- Utilisés comme réfrigérants et propulseurs
- Destruction de la couche d'ozone
- Trou dans la couche d'ozone au-dessus de l'Antarctique
- Interdits mondialement par le Protocole de Montréal (1987)
A single man caused two of the greatest environmental disasters in history. Midgley died in 1944, strangled by a pulley system he had invented to compensate for his paralysis — caused by polio.
A scientist’s battle
Clair Patterson : the man who saved the world
En 1956, le géochimiste Clair Cameron Patterson détermine l'âge de la Terre à 4,55 milliards d'années. Mais pour y parvenir, il doit construire le premier laboratoire « ultra-propre » au monde : le plomb est partout — dans l'eau, l'air, la verrerie, les murs. Patterson comprend que la contamination est d'origine industrielle et décide de le prouver.
En 1965, il publie une étude démonstrative : les niveaux de plomb dans le sang des Américains sont 100 fois supérieurs aux niveaux naturels. Le « plomb naturel » de Robert Kehoe est en réalité de la pollution industrielle. L'industrie réagit avec férocité : Patterson perd ses contrats de recherche, ses financements sont coupés, on tente de le faire renvoyer du Caltech.
En 1966, le sénateur Edmund Muskie convoque des auditions au Sénat américain. Patterson et Kehoe témoignent face à face. Kehoe maintient que les niveaux sont naturels. Patterson le réfute, preuves à l'appui. Ce combat préparera le Clean Air Act de 1970 et, à terme, la disparition de l'essence au plomb.
« Lead is naturally present in the human body. The levels observed in the population present no danger. »
« The lead found in the blood of today's Americans is not natural. It is the direct result of industrial pollution, primarily from leaded petrol. »
Patterson vs. the lead industry
1943
Robert Kehoe imposes the industry paradigm
Robert Kehoe, director of the industry-funded Kettering Laboratory, publishes studies claiming that there is a "safety threshold" for lead exposure and that levels observed in the population are natural. He holds a near-monopoly on the data for 30 years. His conclusions protect the industry for decades.
1956
Clair Patterson determines the age of the Earth
Geochemist Clair Cameron Patterson determines the age of the Earth at 4.55 billion years using lead isotopes in meteorites. To do so, he must create the world's first "ultra-clean" laboratory: lead is everywhere — in water, air, glassware, walls. He realises that lead contamination is a worldwide phenomenon of industrial origin.
1965
Patterson publishes his scientific bombshell
Clair Patterson publishes Contaminated and Natural Lead Environments of Man, demonstrating that blood lead levels in Americans are 100 times higher than natural levels. He proves that Kehoe's "natural" lead is in reality industrial pollution. The lead industry tries to silence him: he loses contracts, his funding is cut, and pressure is applied to have him dismissed from Caltech.
1966
Patterson vs. Kehoe before the U.S. Senate
Senator Edmund Muskie convenes Senate hearings where Patterson and Kehoe testify face to face. Kehoe maintains that lead levels are natural. Patterson demonstrates, with evidence, that this is false. This battle prepares the ground for the Clean Air Act of 1970.
1970
The Clean Air Act authorises regulation of lead
The Clean Air Act is passed unanimously in the U.S. Senate, under the impetus of Senator Muskie. It gives the EPA the power to regulate air pollutants, including lead. Industry resists for several more years before leaded petrol is effectively withdrawn.
Lead paint
Lead paint : a century of delay
La France a interdit la céruse dans la peinture dès 1909. L'Organisation internationale du travail a adopté une convention en 1921. Pourtant, les États-Unis n'ont interdit la peinture au plomb qu'en 1978 — 69 ans après la France.
Ce retard a eu des conséquences dévastatrices, en particulier pour les enfants des quartiers défavorisés vivant dans des logements anciens où la peinture se dégrade. Les jeunes enfants ingèrent les écailles et la poussière de peinture au plomb, provoquant des dommages cérébraux irréversibles.
Aujourd'hui encore, l'OMS et le PNUE estiment qu'environ 100 pays n'ont toujours pas de limites légales contraignantes sur le plomb dans la peinture.
Year
Country / Convention
Measure
1909
France
Ban on white lead (céruse) in paint
1909
Belgique, Autriche
Ban on white lead (céruse)
1914
Suisse
Ban on lead pipes (drinking water)
1921
Convention OIT n° 13
International ban on white lead
1978
États-Unis
Ban on lead paint
1986
Japon
First country to totally ban leaded petrol
1996
États-Unis
End of leaded petrol
2000
Union européenne
Withdrawal of leaded petrol
2003
Suisse
Formal ban on lead in paint (ORRChim)
2021
Algérie (dernier pays)
Global end of leaded petrol
Swiss context
Lead in Swiss buildings
La Suisse a été relativement précoce sur certains aspects : les conduites en plomb pour l'eau potable ont été interdites dès 1914. Cependant, les conduites existantes sont restées en service dans de nombreux bâtiments pendant des décennies.
Les peintures au plomb ont été retirées du marché dans les années 1950, mais l'interdiction formelle dans l'Ordonnance sur la réduction des risques liés aux produits chimiques (ORRChim) ne date que de 2003.
Aujourd'hui, le plomb reste présent dans de nombreux bâtiments anciens : peintures, raccords de canalisations, mastics de vitrage, revêtements anticorrosion, feuilles d'étanchéité, vitraux. Lors de rénovations, le poussière et les écailles de ces matériaux peuvent contaminer les occupants — en particulier les jeunes enfants.
1914Suisse
Switzerland bans lead pipes for drinking water
Switzerland bans the use of lead pipes in drinking-water networks. It is one of the first protective measures against lead in the country. However, existing pipes remain in service in many buildings for decades.
Source : Swiss federal legislation, 1914
2003Suisse
Switzerland formally bans lead in paint
The Ordinance on the Reduction of Risks from Chemical Products (ORRChim) formally bans the use of lead-containing paints in Switzerland. Lead paints had been withdrawn from the market as early as the 1950s, but the regulatory ban only comes 50 years later.
Source : ORRChim, Annex 2.8, 2003
Lead-containing materials in buildings
Old paints (white lead / céruse, minium)
Lead water pipes (buildings pre-1914)
Lead pipe fittings and solder joints
Glazing putties with lead minium
Anti-corrosion coatings (minium, lead chromate)
Lead sheet (roof waterproofing, flashings)
Stained glass windows and lead cames
Counterweights and sash weights in old windows
Electric cables with lead sheathing
Caulked lead pipe joints
1914
Lead pipes banned
For drinking water
2003
Lead paint banned
ORRChim, Annex 2.8
OLED art. 16
Mandatory diagnosis
Before renovation / demolition
2014 — 2019
The Flint crisis : lead is not a thing of the past
En avril 2014, la ville de Flint (Michigan, États-Unis) change sa source d'eau potable pour réduire les coûts. L'eau corrosive de la rivière Flint attaque les anciennes conduites en plomb, contaminant l'eau de 100 000 résidents.
Les résidents se plaignent immédiatement : l'eau est jaunâtre, elle sent mauvais, elle provoque des éruptions cutanées. General Motors cesse d'utiliser l'eau de Flint parce qu'elle corrode ses machines. Pourtant, les autorités affirment pendant 18 mois que l'eau est sûre.
En 2015, la pédiatre Mona Hanna-Attisha démontre que les taux de plomb dans le sang des enfants de Flint ont doublé depuis le changement de source d'eau. Au moins 12 personnes meurent de légionellose liée à la contamination de l'eau. Des dizaines de milliers d'enfants ont subi des dommages neurologiques irréversibles.
Timeline of the Flint crisis
Avr. 2014
Changement de source d'eau vers la rivière Flint
Oct. 2014
General Motors cesse d'utiliser l'eau — trop corrosive pour ses machines
Fév. 2015
Tests municipaux détectent des niveaux élevés de plomb
Sept. 2015
La Dr Hanna-Attisha prouve le doublement du plomb sanguin chez les enfants
Oct. 2015
Retour à l'eau de Detroit — 18 mois trop tard
Janv. 2016
État d'urgence déclaré — Garde nationale mobilisée
The human toll
Le plomb tue silencieusement. Il ne provoque pas de tumeurs spectaculaires comme l'amiante — il réduit le QI des enfants, provoque des maladies cardiovasculaires, détruit les reins. Ses effets sont invisibles, diffus et dévastateurs.
1'500'000+
deaths per year worldwide (WHO / IHME)
World (annual deaths)
1’500’000
Annual deaths attributable to lead exposure, primarily from cardiovascular disease (WHO / IHME, 2021).
Children affected
800 mio+
More than 800 million children worldwide have a blood lead level above 5 μg/dL, the WHO action threshold.
IQ points lost
765 mio
IQ points collectively lost in 2019 by children under 5 years old worldwide due to lead.
United States (historical)
170 mio
Americans born between 1951 and 1980 exposed to dangerous levels of lead in childhood, with a collective loss of 824 million IQ points.
Global economic cost
USD 1’000 mia+
Estimated annual cost of lead exposure worldwide (loss of productivity, healthcare), according to The Lancet Planetary Health.
Countries without regulation
~100
Countries worldwide that still have no binding legal limits on lead in paint (WHO/UNEP, 2024).
Today
And today ? Lead is still here
L'essence au plomb a été éliminée mondialement en 2021. La peinture au plomb est interdite dans la plupart des pays développés. Mais le plomb reste présent dans des millions de bâtiments, dans les sols contaminés, et dans les canalisations anciennes.
En Suisse, tout bâtiment construit avant les années 1960 peut contenir des peintures au plomb, des conduites en plomb, des mastics au minium ou des revêtements anticorrosion à base de plomb. Lors de rénovations, ces matériaux libèrent des poussières toxiques qui menacent les travailleurs et les occupants — en particulier les enfants.
L'OMS est formelle : il n'existe aucun niveau d'exposition au plomb qui soit considéré comme sûr. Chaque microgramme compte, surtout pour le cerveau en développement d'un enfant.
Aucun niveau sûr d'exposition
L'OMS affirme qu'il n'existe aucun seuil en dessous duquel le plomb est inoffensif. Même des concentrations aussi basses que 3,5 µg/dL dans le sang sont associées à une baisse du QI chez les enfants.
800 millions d'enfants touchés dans le monde
Plus de 800 millions d'enfants dans le monde ont un taux de plomb sanguin supérieur au seuil d'action de l'OMS (5 µg/dL). 90 % vivent dans des pays à revenu faible ou intermédiaire.
Diagnostic obligatoire en Suisse avant rénovation
L'OLED (art. 16) impose un diagnostic polluants avant toute rénovation ou démolition de bâtiments construits avant 1990. Le plomb fait partie des polluants recherchés, aux côtés de l'amiante, des PCB et des HAP.
« There is no level of lead exposure that is considered safe. »
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From Antiquity to 2024 : all key events in the history of lead.
~3500 av. J.-C.Découverte
First known uses of lead
Lead objects are found at archaeological sites in Anatolia (present-day Turkey). Lead, easy to smelt and cast, is used for figurines, weights, and seals.
Source : Archaeological archives
250 av. J.-C.Alerte
Nicander of Colophon describes lead poisoning
The Greek poet and physician Nicander of Colophon describes the colic and paralysis caused by lead in his treatise Alexipharmaca. It is one of the earliest clinical descriptions of saturnism (plumbism).
Source : Nicander of Colophon, Alexipharmaca, 2nd century BC
Ier siècle av. J.-C.Alerte
Vitruvius warns against lead pipes
The Roman architect Vitruvius, in his De Architectura, recommends using earthenware pipes rather than lead for drinking water. He observes that lead workers have "a pale complexion" and deteriorating health. The Latin word plumbum would give rise to "plumber" and the chemical symbol Pb.
Source : Vitruvius, De Architectura, Book VIII
Ier siècleDécouverte
Roman sapa: lead in wine
Romans boil grape must in lead vessels to produce sapa (syrup reduced to one-third) and defrutum (reduced by half). The acid in the grapes reacts with the lead to form lead acetate — a toxic sweetener. The Roman elite consume it daily.
Source : Columella, De Re Rustica; Pliny the Elder, Natural History
IIe siècleDécouverte
Theory of Rome's fall due to lead
Modern historians would hypothesise that the massive use of lead — water pipes, tableware, cosmetics, wine with sapa — contributed to the decline of the Roman Empire through chronic poisoning of the elite. The thesis remains debated, but analysis of Roman skeletons reveals very high lead levels.
Source : Jerome Nriagu, Lead and Lead Poisoning in Antiquity, 1983
1786Alerte
Benjamin Franklin denounces the dangers of lead
In a celebrated letter, Benjamin Franklin describes the effects of lead observed in print shops and distilleries. He notes with bitterness that these dangers had been known for decades, but that "mankind is slow to adopt truths that contradict its habits".
Source : Letter from Benjamin Franklin to Benjamin Vaughan, 1786
1839Alerte
Tanquerel des Planches publishes his treatise on saturnism
The French physician Louis Tanquerel des Planches publishes an exhaustive medical treatise on saturnism (lead poisoning), documenting more than 1,200 clinical cases. He describes lead colic, encephalopathy, and limb paralysis. The work serves as a reference for decades.
Source : Tanquerel des Planches, Traité des maladies de plomb ou saturnines, 1839
1878Industrie
The white-lead industry kills its workers
In France, up to 50% of workers in white-lead (céruse) factories are hospitalised each year for serious poisoning. "Painter's colic" (coliques du peintre) becomes a common expression. Women and children are particularly affected.
Source : Labour Inspectorate reports, France, 19th century
1897Alerte
First cases of children poisoned by lead paint
In Australia, Dr J. Lockhart Gibson identifies mass cases of saturnism in children in Brisbane. He establishes the link between lead-based paints used on verandas and childhood poisoning. Children ingest paint flakes.
Source : J. Lockhart Gibson, Australasian Medical Gazette, 1904
1909Interdiction
France bans white lead in paint
The law of 20 July 1909, supported by Georges Clemenceau, bans the use of white lead (céruse) in all painting works in France. Enforcement is postponed to 1915. Production is not banned — lead continues to be exported.
Source : Law of 20 July 1909, France
1914Suisse
Switzerland bans lead pipes for drinking water
Switzerland bans the use of lead pipes in drinking-water networks. It is one of the first protective measures against lead in the country. However, existing pipes remain in service in many buildings for decades.
Source : Swiss federal legislation, 1914
1921Interdiction
International Convention on white lead
The International Labour Organization (ILO) adopts Convention No. 13 banning the use of white lead and lead sulphate in painting. France ratifies it in 1926. The United States refuses to ratify — and still has not done so.
Source : ILO Convention No. 13, 1921
1921Scandale
Thomas Midgley Jr. discovers tetraethyl lead
Engineer Thomas Midgley Jr., working for General Motors, discovers that tetraethyl lead (TEL) eliminates engine knock in petrol. This is the beginning of leaded petrol. Midgley would also invent CFCs, which destroy the ozone layer. A historian would describe him as "the man who did the most harm to the Earth's atmosphere".
Source : Midgley et al., Industrial and Engineering Chemistry, 1922
1924Scandale
Deaths at the Ethyl plant: the hushed-up scandal
General Motors, Standard Oil, and DuPont create the Ethyl Corporation to produce leaded petrol. Within months, dozens of workers at the Bayway plant (New Jersey) develop hallucinations, convulsions, and psychosis. In total, 15 workers die and dozens are hospitalised. The plant is nicknamed "the house of butterflies" (la maison des fous).
Source : New York Times archives, October 1924
1924Scandale
Midgley simulates the safety of TEL before the press
At a press conference, Thomas Midgley Jr. pours tetraethyl lead over his hands and inhales its vapours for 60 seconds to "prove" its harmlessness. In reality, Midgley had himself been hospitalised for lead poisoning shortly beforehand. He was subsequently forced to take convalescent leave.
Source : Press conference, 30 October 1924
1925Scandale
Sales of leaded petrol resume
After a one-year suspension and an inquiry by the Public Health Service led by scientists close to industry, sales of leaded petrol resume in the United States. Robert Kehoe, a physician funded by the Ethyl Corporation, asserts that lead is "naturally present" in the human body — a claim that is false and will not be refuted until decades later.
Source : U.S. Surgeon General Conference, May 1925
1943Scandale
Robert Kehoe imposes the industry paradigm
Robert Kehoe, director of the industry-funded Kettering Laboratory, publishes studies claiming that there is a "safety threshold" for lead exposure and that levels observed in the population are natural. He holds a near-monopoly on the data for 30 years. His conclusions protect the industry for decades.
Source : Kettering Laboratory, reports 1943–1965
1956Découverte
Clair Patterson determines the age of the Earth
Geochemist Clair Cameron Patterson determines the age of the Earth at 4.55 billion years using lead isotopes in meteorites. To do so, he must create the world's first "ultra-clean" laboratory: lead is everywhere — in water, air, glassware, walls. He realises that lead contamination is a worldwide phenomenon of industrial origin.
Source : Patterson, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 1956
1965Alerte
Patterson publishes his scientific bombshell
Clair Patterson publishes Contaminated and Natural Lead Environments of Man, demonstrating that blood lead levels in Americans are 100 times higher than natural levels. He proves that Kehoe's "natural" lead is in reality industrial pollution. The lead industry tries to silence him: he loses contracts, his funding is cut, and pressure is applied to have him dismissed from Caltech.
Source : Patterson, Archives of Environmental Health, 1965
1966Justice
Patterson vs. Kehoe before the U.S. Senate
Senator Edmund Muskie convenes Senate hearings where Patterson and Kehoe testify face to face. Kehoe maintains that lead levels are natural. Patterson demonstrates, with evidence, that this is false. This battle prepares the ground for the Clean Air Act of 1970.
Source : U.S. Senate Hearings, Subcommittee on Air and Water Pollution, 1966
1970Interdiction
The Clean Air Act authorises regulation of lead
The Clean Air Act is passed unanimously in the U.S. Senate, under the impetus of Senator Muskie. It gives the EPA the power to regulate air pollutants, including lead. Industry resists for several more years before leaded petrol is effectively withdrawn.
Source : Clean Air Act, 1970, United States
1978Interdiction
The United States bans lead paint
The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) bans lead paint in homes, public buildings, furniture, and toys in the United States. France had banned it in paint as early as 1909 — it took the United States 69 years to do the same.
Source : CPSC, Lead-Containing Paint Rule, 1978
1996Interdiction
End of leaded petrol in the United States
Leaded petrol is finally totally banned for road vehicles in the United States. Tetraethyl lead will have been added to petrol for 73 years, contaminating the entire planet's atmosphere and causing irreversible harm to hundreds of millions of people.
Source : EPA, 1 January 1996
2000Interdiction
The European Union bans leaded petrol
Leaded petrol is withdrawn from the European market. Switzerland had already stopped selling leaded petrol in the 1990s.
2003Suisse
Switzerland formally bans lead in paint
The Ordinance on the Reduction of Risks from Chemical Products (ORRChim) formally bans the use of lead-containing paints in Switzerland. Lead paints had been withdrawn from the market as early as the 1950s, but the regulatory ban only comes 50 years later.
Source : ORRChim, Annex 2.8, 2003
2014–2019Scandale
Flint water crisis, Michigan
In April 2014, the city of Flint changes its drinking-water source to cut costs. The corrosive water from the Flint River attacks lead pipes, contaminating the water supply of 100,000 residents. Blood lead levels in children double. At least 12 people die of Legionellosis. Authorities deny the problem for 18 months.
Source : Hanna-Attisha et al., American Journal of Public Health, 2016
2021Interdiction
Global end of leaded petrol
Algeria is the last country to stop using leaded petrol. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) declares the official worldwide end of leaded petrol. In one century, leaded petrol will have contaminated the atmosphere of the entire planet.
Source : UNEP, 30 August 2021
2022Alerte
Half of Americans exposed to lead in childhood
A study published in PNAS reveals that more than 170 million Americans born between 1951 and 1980 were exposed to high levels of lead in childhood, resulting in an estimated collective loss of 824 million IQ points.
Source : McFarland et al., PNAS, 2022
2024Alerte
WHO launches global call to action against lead
The WHO reaffirms that there is no safe level of lead exposure and launches a global call to action. According to estimates, lead causes 1.5 million deaths per year worldwide, primarily from cardiovascular disease. One in three children worldwide has a blood lead level above 5 μg/dL.
Source : WHO, International Action Week, October 2024
Sources and references
This page is based on verifiable and recognised sources. The facts presented are documented in the scientific literature, historical archives and reports of official institutions.
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