An article from UPI.com reveals that several environmental groups have asked the Environmental Protection Agency to outlaw the use of lead tire weights. By banning the lead tire weights, the group says, will prevent future problems that they could cause with wildlife and children. The group and United States scientists sent the Environmental Protection Agency a petition asking it to add lead tire weights to the government’s lead-based products that are banned. Other products that are banned by the government on that list include things like lead based paints. The Center for Environmental Health, a group that signed the petition thinks that the weights could eventually be found in places where it can harm children and wildlife that come across it. Here is a quote from the article:

‘"We found in our research that this was one of the last unregulated sources of lead into the environment," Center for Environmental Health spokesman Charles Margulis said. "Massive amounts of lead come off every year from wheel weights dropping to the side of the road."’

The petition is supposed to receive a response from the Environmental Protection Agency in at least 90 days. Lead based products are something that has come under fire again recently especially in the toy industry. There were several toys that had to be recalled that were being manufactured in China that showed having lead in them. President Barack Obama signed into law the Lead Free Toy act and has been a proponent of protecting children from lead based products that they can come into contact with. Will tire weights be next on the list?