There’s no safe level of lead for children, but more than 12,000 water outlets — faucets and fountains — in schools across New York tested above the state’s threshold of 5 parts per billion, according to a report report from Environment America and the New York Public Interest Research Group. In Monroe County alone, 1,069 water outlets tested above the limit.
“The worst part is our findings may just be the tip of the toxic iceberg when it comes to lead in school drinking water,” said David Masur, senior advocate for the Environment America Research and Policy Center.
The report found that 42% of public schools in New York had at least one outlet that tested above the state standard 5 parts per billion, based on state Department of Health testing
results that are self-reported by school districts.
The rate is even higher in Monroe County where 70% of school buildings tested above state limits for lead in school drinking water. It’s the eighth-highest rate statewide, with 102 of the county’s 146 schools reporting at least one testing above the limit.
The outlets exceeding the state standard must be replaced by the school district. Other outlets, including those testing positive for lead at lower levels, do not. That’s one reason advocates don’t think the state’s current lead program goes far enough.
“Hundreds, if not thousands of drinking fountains contaminated with lead could go unreported and unaddressed every single year,” Masur said.
That’s because health professionals, including the American Academy of Pediatricians, agree there is no safe lead level.
“There's nothing you can do to get back what you had before you had that lead exposure. We can just try to mitigate the damage,” said Dr. Christopher Monson, a Rochester-area pediatrician.
Once lead was identified as a potent neurotoxin, it was removed from gasoline and paint to prevent exposure. But it was more difficult and costly to remove lead water pipes.
“So we need to be more proactive, be more preventative, in the way that we get lead out of our water and particularly in our school systems where children are concentrated,” Monson said.
While lead paint chips and dust hazards are the primary source of elevated blood lead levels, every avenue of exposure matters, said Claire Henrie, with the Coalition to Prevent Lead Poisoning.
“Chronic exposure over extended periods of time poses long-term health risks that follow individuals into adulthood, including increased risk of cognitive decline and dementia later in life and cardiovascular disease,” said Henrie.
The state’s “test and fix” approach is clearly inadequate, Masur said. The report includes recommendations from the New York Public Interest Research Group and the Environment American Research and Policy Center.
Those recommendations include:
- Require the installation of lead capturing filters on all taps used for drinking, cooking and beverage preparation in all school buildings across New York State
- Set a one part per billion limit on lead in school drinking water
- Local school districts should voluntarily take steps to implement the one part per billion limit and upgrade all old drinking fountains and sinks with lead filtering equipment.
“As the parent of two children in a local public school, I'm outraged and appalled by the findings of our new Get the Lead Out New York study,” Masur said. “Our communities and our children deserve better.”
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Lead above NY limit found at 1,069 Monroe County school taps
