EPA LEAD INSPECTOR EXAM AND 2024-2025
EPA LEAD INSPECTOR EXAM AND 2024-
2025 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
What do lead based paint inspections focus on? -Correct Answer ✔they focus attention
on the sources of lead that could poison children and reduce the cost of lead hazard
control by identifying which surfaces are coated with lead-based paint.
What are certified inspectors capable of? -Correct Answer ✔1. identifying the lead-
based painted surfaces in housing
2. Certify the results of an inspection in writing.
3. Conduct post-hazard control clearance sampling to determine if
a. the specified hazard control safety was conducted
b. the area is safe for unprotected workers to enter
c. the area is a safe place for residents and young children to live
An inspector must be able to... -Correct Answer ✔- be knowledgeable about the
performance & limitations of all lead testing technique and methods
-familiar with all lead testing methods and sample techniques & standards
- able to perform math calculations
-skilled in understanding results
- can make objective decisions
-able to implement and interpret quality control procedures
When do lead inspectors get a refresher course & post-course examination? -Correct
Answer ✔Every 3 years
What is the lead-based paint disclosure rule? -Correct Answer ✔In the late 1996, the
EPA and HUD created the lead-based paint disclosure rule that allows prospective
purchasers of housing built before 1978 to have a lead-based paint or risk assessment
to determine whether lead based paint or lead-based paint hazards exist in housing
Why is lead more common in children of lower income and/or people of color? -Correct
Answer ✔1. Worse physical condition and older housing
2. More lead-contaminated dust in the home
3. high lead levels in urban soil
4. Poor Nutrition
5. Lead in drinking water
What is the largest remaining source of lead exposure in children? -Correct Answer
✔contaminated dust and soil
What is Title X? -Correct Answer ✔the residential lead-based paint HAzard reduction
Act ( Title X) of the community and housing Act of 1992 shifted the focus of federal
EPA LEAD INSPECTOR EXAM AND 2024-2025
,EPA LEAD INSPECTOR EXAM AND 2024-2025
legislation from acting only on existing lead-based paint hazards to preventing new
hazards from occurring
What is lead based paint? -Correct Answer ✔Paint, varnish, shellac, or other coating on
surfaces that contain 1.0 mg/cm² or more of lead or 0.5% by weight
What are Lead-based paint hazards? -Correct Answer ✔any condition that causes
exposure to lead contaminated dust, lead contaminated soil, or lead-contaminated paint
that is deteriorated or present in accessible surfaces, friction surfaces, or impact
surfaces that would result in adverse human health effects as identified by the EPA
administrator under TSCA Section 403
What is Deteriorated paint? -Correct Answer ✔any interior or exterior paint that is
peeling, chipping, chalking, or cracking, or is located on an interior/exterior surface or
fixture that is damaged.
What is an accessible surface? -Correct Answer ✔Surface that protrudes from the
surrounding area to the extent that a child can chew the surface and is within 3 feet of
the floor or ground (Window sills, railing, stair tread)
what is a friction surface? -Correct Answer ✔an interior/exterior surface that is subject to
abrasion/friction (windows, floor, staircases)
what is an impact surface? -Correct Answer ✔an interior/exterior surface that is subject
to damage from repeated impacts (parts of door frames)
What is the primary purpose of HUD Guidelines? -Correct Answer ✔The guidelines
purpose is to guide people involved in identifying and controlling lead-based paint
hazards in housing.
who can use HUD guidelines? -Correct Answer ✔the guidelines can be used by state
and local governments or the private sector as a source of standards and procedures
for testing and abating lead based paint in public and privately owned housing, day care
centers, and public buildings that exhibit conditions similar to those in residential
structures.
What are the three main reasons lead has been used in PAINT? -Correct Answer ✔1.
as a pigment
2. to add durability and corrosion control
3. as a drying agent
What are the principal industrial uses and products containing lead? -Correct Answer
✔1. electrical storage batteries
2. ammunition
3. various chemicals
EPA LEAD INSPECTOR EXAM AND 2024-2025
,EPA LEAD INSPECTOR EXAM AND 2024-2025
4. sinkers for fishing
What is the major cause of lead exposure for adults? -Correct Answer ✔the workplace
experts agree childhood lead poisoning can be attributed to -Correct Answer ✔1. Lead
based paint in housing
2. lead in interior/exterior surface dust (through hand-to-mouth transmission)
3. urban soil (contaminated from lead-based paint, gasoline, and industrial sources)
4. drinking water (primarily from leaded solder; brass fittings and fixtures; and service
lines)
What does lead-based paint kill? -Correct Answer ✔kills mold and mildew
What is the most common route of lead exposure in the children? -Correct Answer ✔the
more common route of exposure is by ingesting lead-bearing dust that is formed by the
paint when it deteriorates, chalks, or is disturbed through renovation or even abrasion
from the opening and closing of windows and other friction and impact surfaces.
Lead in surface dust and soil of all types can come from. . . -Correct Answer ✔-
weathering and chipping of lead-based paint
- scraping and sanding of lead-based paint in preparation for refinishing; renovations
that break surfaces painted with lead-based paint
- abrasion and/or impact on door and windows
When and where is there a higher exposure to lead in soil? -Correct Answer ✔-if the
house has exterior lead based paint, there is a higher likelihood that the soil lead levels
will be greater than EPA's level of concern (currently 400 parts per million).
- lead contamination is most likely to be found around the outside of the house at the
roof drip line.
What are some factors that may lead to lead in drinking water? -Correct Answer ✔1. the
amount and age of lead-containing materials susceptible to corrosion
2. the amount of time the water is in contact with these materials
3. the corrosiveness of the water
Can lead-based paint inspectors collect water samples? -Correct Answer ✔No. Title X
does not define lead contamination in water as a lead-based paint hazard. Additionally,
under the EPA training and certification rules, (Section 402 of TSCA), water sampling is
included as a part of a risk assessment, not an INSPECTION. Therefore, lead-based
paint inspectors cannot collect water samples or recommend corrective measures.
What ares some sources of lead exposure in the air? -Correct Answer ✔Lead gasoline,
smelters, battery factories, combustion of oil, coal, waste, municipal waste, windblown
dust. Even activities such as abrasive blasting, sanding, burning, or welding on steel
EPA LEAD INSPECTOR EXAM AND 2024-2025
, EPA LEAD INSPECTOR EXAM AND 2024-2025
structures coated with lead-containing paints may produce very high concentrations of
lead dust and fumes.
What are some ways in which food is contaminated with lead? -Correct Answer ✔1.
from containers with lead solder, lead glaze, or other materials with lead, especially if
contents are acidic in nature
2. by airborne lead from industrial or automobile emissions deposited onto crops or
water
3. by uptake into food crops from lead in soil or pesticide applications
4. during transportation or processing
What are some occupations in which adults may be more likely to be exposed to lead? -
Correct Answer ✔adults who work in certain industries, such as smelting, auto body
repair shops, painting shops, scrap metal works, electrical work, demolition, and
construction can be at risk to lead poisoning.
What are the three systems where the effects of lead are most dangerous? -Correct
Answer ✔1. the central and peripheral nervous systems
2. the cardiovascular system, including the blood forming system
3. the kidneys
Exposure to high concentrations of lead can cause? -Correct Answer ✔Retardation
Convulsions
Coma
Death
What are the most common routes of exposure to lead in children and adults -Correct
Answer ✔Inhalation and digestion
What happens once lead enters the body? -Correct Answer ✔once in the body, lead is
distributed by the bloodstream to red blood cells, soft tissue, and bone. Lead is
eliminated very slowly from the body by the kidneys and gastrointestinal tract; very very
tiny amounts of lead are lost through perspiration
What is acute lead poisoning? -Correct Answer ✔Acute exposure to lead generally
means exposure for a short time, but at high levels.
Some symptoms may include abdominal pain, constipation, diarrhea, damage to the
brain and central nervous system, fatigue, irritability, weakness, and muscle pain.
What is chronic lead poisoning? -Correct Answer ✔Chronic lead exposure generally
means exposure to low to moderate levels of lead over a long period of time.
Symptoms include: impaired blood formation, high blood pressure, changes in the
nervous system, drooping hand/foot, reproductive complications, damage to developing
fetus.
EPA LEAD INSPECTOR EXAM AND 2024-2025
