Meanwhile, lead levels exceeding 10 parts per billon – the standard preferred by the World Health Organization – have been found at United Water and in private systems at Englewood Hospital and Medical Center and at Upper Saddle River Reformed Church.
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That’s because federal law requires testing only in schools or districts that run their own water systems.
Federal rules mandate a 30-day notification for homeowners An Associated Press review of U.S. EPA data shows that 31 water systems in IL have exceeded the federal lead standard at least once since January 1, 2013.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports Christus St. Vincent’s hospital in Santa Fe is one of them, with hazardous levels of lead turning up every year since 2011.
That could change if some state lawmakers succeed in passing a bill that requires testing in all schools.
A report by The Record newspaper stated that lead at over 13 times the federal EPA limit was found in drinking water at schools 6, 9 and 28 – all elementary schools. But the Portland Water Bureau in an email to The Associated Press said the city doesn’t have lead service lines and customers are being exposed in high-risk homes – those with plumbing installed between 1970 and 1985.
In all, more than 60 water systems in Oregon, Idaho and Washington have reported samples above federal lead limits during the last three years, according to the data.
Indeed, lead was found in the drinking water in each of the Ridgewood school district’s schools and the administration building, according to results emailed to parents recently.
The three that do supply drinking water – Citizens Water Association of Deer Lake, the Auburn Municipal Authority and Mountain Water Authority, Joliett – said that their water is safe to drink and the test sample was either flawed or the problem was resolved.
Both the AP’s analysis and state results show the water system that serves about 50 people at the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s marine headquarters in Old Lyme is among those not compliant with federal lead and copper levels.
The city discovered its most recent problem last fall, when 7 out of 40 samples came back at unacceptable levels. In response to the city’s lead-tainted water crisis, the school hands out bottles of water to students daily.
Officials say the water is safe though and they’re working to get the lead problem fixed.
When high lead levels are detected in such testing, officials take a closer look at the area and notify residents of the potential hazard that could be caused by the plumbing in their homes, said Randall Gillum, public utilities manager for Clarksville Gas & Water.
“It is really not the water providers”, Parker said. Adults can have kidney problems and high blood pressure, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention and the Environmental Protection Agency. Bottled water has been known to contain chlorine and fluoride, two ingredients that many people do not want intheir bodies because they are unsafe.
Jordan said the company also makes system-wide information on lead sample results available to customers through its annual Water Quality Report. Pino said the state needs four workers for an “adequate program”. So the next best thing to do is install a water filtration device on your tap and use that water for cooking, as well as for drinking.
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“We sample for lead on a routine basis in accordance with the EPA regulatory requirements, and our systems continue to be in compliance”, she said.
