Abstract
Street and playground dust are potentially significant sources of lead for children in urban communities. However, their importance as sources of lead intake in typical urban areas has not been sufficiently assessed. This investigation indicated that proximity to traffic plays a direct rôle in the accumulation of high lead concentrations in the dust of streets and playgrounds. The lead content of Jeddah street dust may exceed 1000 μg g
−1 while the background concentration is less than 10 μg g
−1. Maximum concentrations were found in the central parts of Jeddah and other areas of heavy traffic density.