Are you concerned about lead in school drinking water?
Many Southern Californians think that there isn’t a problem with lead-contaminated drinking water in schools. We read about the crisis in Flint, Michigan, and it feels very far away. But there are schools in Southern California where kids cannot use drinking fountains because the water is contaminated with lead.
No amount of lead is OK
“Why is this a big deal?,” you may be wondering. Well, according to the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), which is part of the federal government, there is no safe amount of lead that kids can be exposed to without harmful effects. Even small amounts of lead in drinking water can result in serious damage to developing children.
Pipes, fixtures, and solder that contain lead have been banned since 1986, but it wasn’t until 1997 that buildings had to be built with certified lead-free fixtures to pass mandatory inspections. In some schools throughout Southern California, plumbing systems are decades old, resulting in lead-contaminated water.
This Desert Sun article, which was published in March of this year, found that various schools in Southern California have dangerously high lead contamination levels, including 3 schools in the Maryville Joint Unified School District (north of Sacramento, Yuba County).
Thankfully many Southern California schools are required to test lead levels in drinking water on a regular basis. Any school that has a public water system must routinely test water quality. Tests for lead and copper are required every 3 years, though if a high lead reading is reported, follow-up tests are mandatory every six months.
Are you concerned about lead levels in the schools your kids attend? What you can do
Based on the findings of the Desert Sun article and the recent crisis in Flint, it’s important to be proactive about making sure your kids aren’t being exposed to lead in their school’s drinking water or anywhere else.
Ask school administrators about the results of water testing in the school water systems, and make sure tests are being performed regularly. Ask about the age of school plumbing systems – if they’re more than a couple of decades old, they likely leach lead into the schools’ drinking water. Be proactive!
And if you do find out that your school has lead in the drinking water, get involved to make sure everyone’s kids only have clean, safe drinking water at school. Access to healthy water is one of the most important ways we can set up our kids for success.
What can H2 Environmental Consulting Services to do help?
H2 Environmental Consulting Services offers complete lead remediation services. We thoroughly test schools for all kinds of potential contaminants – lead, asbestos, mold, fungus, and more, and then develop a thorough remediation plan to ensure everyone in that school has access to safe drinking water. We strictly adhere to all federal and state regulations, and our top priority is making Southern California a safer place to live.
What could be more essential than having clean drinking water in schools? Make it happen by partnering with H2 Environmental Consulting Services.
