Skip to main content
Turn on more accessible mode
Turn off more accessible mode
Skip Ribbon Commands
Turn off Animations
Turn on Animations
FollowFollow Focus on Content Focus on Content
Website input:
Help us make our website better. Give us your feedback in a short interview.
Dakota County Logo
  • Maps & Directions
  • |
  • Departments
  • |
  • About Us
  • |
  • Contact Us
Dakota County Logo
  • Government
      • Board of Commissioners
      • County Attorney
      • County Sheriff
      • Commissioner Meetings
      • County Manager
      • Budget & Financial Reports
      • Performance & Analysis
      • Land Use Planning
      • County Policies
      • Data Practices
      • Advisory Committees
      • Other Public Committees & Initiatives
      • Doing Business with the County
      • Information Technology
      • Grant Management
      • Jobs & Volunteering
      • Public Employee Training
      • Other Public Entities
      • Voting & Elections
  • Home & Property
      • Pay Property Taxes
      • Property Tax Statements
      • Property Tax 101
      • Property Tax Programs, Homesteads & Credits
      • Important Dates for Property Owners
      • Assessing Property
      • Recording Property Documents
      • Property Watch
      • Foreclosed Property
      • Tax-Forfeited Property
      • Online Property Maps
      • Online Property Records
      • Homebuyer & Homeowner Programs
      • Aggregate Tax
      • Evictions
      • Plats & Surveys
      • Taxing Districts & Tax Increment Financing
      • Selling Property
      • Maps & Mapping Services
  • Permits & Licenses
      • Service & License Centers
      • Birth Certificates
      • Death Certificates
      • Marriage Licenses & Certificates
      • Passports
      • Driver's License
      • Motor Vehicle Titles & Registration
      • Recreational Vehicle Licenses
      • Game & Fishing Licenses
      • Professional Licenses
      • Gambling Permits
      • Liquor Licenses
      • Cannabis Permits
      • Gun Permits
      • Assembly Licenses
      • Building & Land Use Permits
      • Business Hazardous Waste Licenses
      • Well Permits
      • Waste Hauler & Facilities Licenses
      • Highway Permits
  • Law & Justice
      • Most Wanted
      • Warrants
      • Criminal Complaint Search
      • Report a Crime Tip
      • Crime Prevention
      • Jail
      • Juvenile Detention
      • Crime Victim & Witness Support
      • Alternatives to Court
      • Service of Legal Documents
      • Law Library
      • Contact a Probation Officer
      • Probation & Community Programs
      • Conditions of Probation
      • Probation Fees & Restitution
      • District Courts
      • County Ordinances
      • Fingerprinting Services
      • County Attorney News Releases
      • County Sheriff News Releases
  • Health & Family
      • Healthy Living
      • Job Search Assistance
      • Parenting Help
      • Personal Finance
      • Public Assistance
      • Adult Protection
      • Child Care
      • Child Protection
      • Child Support
      • Adoption
      • Chemical Health
      • Foster Care
      • Mental Health
      • Aging & Disability Services
      • Emergency Preparedness
      • Health Services
      • Veterans Services
  • Environment
      • The Recycling Zone
      • Recycling Guide
      • Residential Recycling & Disposal
      • Business Recycling & Disposal
      • School Recycling & Disposal
      • Environmental Education Resources
      • Water Resources
      • Energy
      • Land Conservation
      • Sustainability
      • Environmental Funding
      • Environmental Reports & Studies
      • Report an Environmental Concern
  • Transportation
      • Current Road Construction
      • Planned Road Construction
      • Road Safety
      • Transportation Studies
      • Traffic Counts
      • Getting Around the County
      • Highways & Your Property
      • Transit
      • Contact Transportation
      • Transportation Planning
      • Sales & Use Tax
  • Maps & Directions About Us
    Departments Contact Us
Dakota County Home
Healthy Living
 
Search
  • Home
    • Health & Family
      • Healthy Living
        • Your Health and the Environment
          • Pages
            • prevent-lead-poisoning

​Contact

Public Health
651-554-6100
public.health@co.dakota.mn.us

  • Nutrition
  • Breastfeeding or Chestfeeding
  • Walking and Moving
  • Preventing Disease
  • Commercial Tobacco
  • Your Health and the Environment
    • LeadCurrently selected
    • Radon
    • Mold
    • Report an Environmental Health Concern
  • Worksite Wellness

Lead

Page Content

​​​Children under age 6 are most at risk from lead poisoning because they are more likely to ingest lead and their bodies are developing rapidly. Babies and small children can swallow or breathe in lead from contaminated dirt, dust, or sand while they play on the ground or floor. Even at low levels of exposure, lead can affect a child’s learning, behavior and growth. Learn more by visiting the Minnesota Department of Health website. 

Lead poisoning is entirely preventable. The key is stopping children from coming into contact with lead. Lead may be found in:

  • Paint in many homes older than 1978. Most homes built before 1950 have lead-based paint in them.
  • Lead paint dust on window sills or toys, pacifiers, and other objects children may put in their mouth.
  • Bare soil, particularly within three feet of the foundation of a house built before 1978.
  • Some soil in Dakota County may contain car battery chips and parts that are contaminated with lead.
  • Water from lead pipes or pipes with lead solders.
  • Some consumer products such as fishing tackle, jewelry, toys, cosmetics and home remedies may be contain lead.

Safely dispose of items and materials containing lead at The Recycling Zone.

Testing for lead exposure

Check with your health care provider if you think that your child has a risk for lead exposure. A simple blood test can determine whether your child has been exposed to lead.

Check your soil for lead July 1​4-Aug. 1, 2025

If you live near the Gopher Resource facility, you can drop off a soil sample for a free lead screening.

Drop box loc​ation, dates and times

Wescott Library
1340 Wescott Road, Eagan

  • Opens: Monday, July 14 at 9 a.m.
  • Last soil samples picked up: Friday, Aug. 1​ at 3 p.m.

​How it works

Get instructions for soil samples from your yard or garden. Then, drop it off at Wescott Library.

The Minnesota Department of Health will analyze your sample within two weeks. You'll get your results within a month.

Your personal information will only be seen by Minnesota Department of Health staff​.

Gopher Resource lead emissions

Gopher Resource recycles lead-acid batteries in Eagan. The facility operates under air, industrial stormwater and hazardous waste permits.

From January–March 2025, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) air monitoring data showed elevated lead levels that exceeded national ambient air quality standards at the facility. That data and air modeling suggest that elevated lead air concentrations were likely restricted to within about three-quarters of a mile of the facility. The highest lead levels were directly along the facility's northern property line.

MPCA data indicates that lead levels returned to acceptable levels in April. MPCA inspected Gopher Resource this spring and confirmed the source of the elevated lead levels was addressed.

Community meetings

Residents may have questions about the elevated lead levels. The MPCA will host two community meetings to share information about the recent lead emissions from Gopher Resource. The Minnesota Department of Health and Dakota County Public Health will be present to answer health questions.

  • Virtual meeting, Monday, July 21 at 3 p.m. Webinar registration details.
  • Community ​meeting, Tuesday, July 22 from 6–8 p.m. at Eagan Community Center.​





Last updated: 7/25/2025 3:18 PM

Administration Center
  • 1590 Highway 55
  • Hastings, MN 55033
  • Ph: 651-437-3191
  • Toll free: 800-247-1056
  •  
  • See all County buildings
    Social Media
  • Facebook
  • X
  • LinkedIn
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • Next Door
  • Sign up for E-News
    Quick Links
  • Home
  • Accessibility
  • Nondiscrimination
  • Language Translation
  • Job Opportunities
  • Make a Payment
  • Privacy Policy
Dakota County, Minnesota
Sign In