Shanghai city government authorities have shut two Johnson Controls plants in China after claims they may be causing lead poisoning in children.
“A small amount of children living in the Kangqiao area in eastern Shanghai were found to have excessive levels of lead in their blood in early September,” the Shanghai Environmental Protection Bureau said in a statement cited by AFP.
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The agency said an initial investigation found that Shanghai Johnson Controls International Battery had been emitting dust and smoke containing lead.
Another plant called Shanghai Xinmingyuan Auto Accessories had been found using lead in production without proper approval and both factories had subsequently been ordered to shut down, the agency added.
Johnson Controls said it believed its plant was not the source of the problem but that it was cooperating with the city government.
“We are working with the government to understand and address these issues. However, we have no reason to believe we are the source of the issue,” it said in a statement to AFP.
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By GlobalDataJohnson Controls said the plant’s lead emission average was one-seventh of China’s national standard, while the discharge through wastewater was one-tenth the national requirement. Xinmingyuan Auto Accessories refused to comment.
The environmental bureau did not say how many children were affected by the pollution leak but the Shanghai Daily, a newspaper controlled by the local government, said that 25 children in the area were found with high lead levels.
