JERSEY CITY -- The city has been awarded a $689,000 grant to expand lead testing for children in the city, according to a release.

This award for the Childhood Lead Exposure Prevention (CLEP) project comes in addition to the $198,000 the city has received in the past to operate the program -- representing a 247 percent increase in funding to the city, according to the release.

"This grant will allow us to expand our current lead prevention program, helping us to provide prevention and intervention for lead exposure, in addition to educating our communities about the dangers of lead exposure," Mayor Steven Fulop said in statement.

This new award will allow the city to expand its program to test children up to the age of 17. The original grant only covered children up to 5 years old.

The city has been operating a lead prevention program since 1977 and has tested over 50,000 children, according to the release.

This additional grant funding will allow for the City to provide nurse-based education, in a variety of languages, to the families with children of high Blood Lead Levels, allowing for early prevention and intervention strategies.

Funding for the project will come from the NJDOH, Division of Family Health Services, and Child and Adolescent Health Program.

Corey W. McDonald may be reached at cmcdonald@jjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @coreymacc. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook.