Water systems at schools, parks, prisons and neighborhoods in California are among those that have tested above the federal limit for lead in the past three years.
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Since 2013, the Moosup Garden Apartments in Hartford, Roto Frank of America in Chester, Baxter Farms Community Water Association in Tolland, Whitcraft Corporation in Eastford, DEEP Marine Headquarter sin Portland and Birch Mountain Day School in Manchester have all significantly exceeded the federal mandate of lead levels below 15 parts per billion at least once. The state Department of Environmental Protection said in February it had reviewed more than 150 public water systems serving more than 6 million people – including water systems in cities with high rates of lead exposure – and that none exceeded EPA standards for lead in drinking water. According to PRI, over 2,000 of America’s water systems in all 50 states, are contaminated with lead which poses a health risk to the people who drink it, wash dishes or even use it to bath and/or shower in. The building, which houses elementary and high schools, reported lead levels from 16 to 20 parts per billion in 2014 and 2015, according to the EPA. That could change if some state lawmakers succeed in passing a bill that requires testing in all schools. If lead concentrations exceed that level in more than 10 percent of a water system’s sampled taps, and those results are confirmed by additional testing, the system’s operator is required to act. It had a sample result of 15.7 ppb in 2013 and has never had a sample below 4.5 ppb since testing began in 1992. If over, they must inform customers and take steps such as adding chemicals to control corrosion and prevent leaching of the lead.
Pretty Eagle Catholic Academy in St. Xavier, about 25 miles south of Hardin on the Crow Reservation, reported a lead level of 24 parts per billion in 2014. Two others said errors put them on the list and that their water was within EPA guidelines. The USA Today Network investigated the findings and they discovered “at least 180 of the water systems failed to notify consumers about the high lead levels as federal rules require”. Staff disconnected water coolers and replaced them with two large drinking-water jugs in the main hallway. Of those 300, NJ.com noted that 76 of them were above the required action level, and district superintendent Christopher Cerf ordered water fountains to be turned off in the schools with high lead levels, distributing bottled water for the children instead. Charles Fields, dad of four, said his son has already tested positive for lead in his blood.
“We very rarely see it in the source”, said Kristin Hansen of the DEP’s Bureau of Water Systems Engineering, referring to the wells and reservoirs used by a water system. The disaster with lead contaminating drinking water and rendering it unsafe has been well documented nationally for months.
“So, if there’s any problems, we can catch it right away”, Field said.
“We’ve always served bottled water”, he said.
The actions come in response to pressure from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which has asked state drinking water regulators to help restore public confidence after the lead-tainted water crisis in Flint, Michigan.
Boston, by contrast, had no over-the-limit testing sample since 2013. In the meantime, he said, “all staff and students are made aware several times per year of the lead in the water”.
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Every day, lead pipes deliver water to an estimated 9,000 residential and commercial properties in Kenosha, primarily in older neighborhoods.
