According to WCAX, some of the schools found high levels of lead in their drinking water and many of them are making changes as a result. Several schools are reporting that they are replacing any sinks or fountains that the tests showed to have lead in the water.
The EPA has set the acceptable level of lead in drinking water at 15 ppb (parts per billion). The Vermont Health Department has a loftier goal—suggesting drinking water shouldn’t be higher than 1 ppb. The health department says that lead problems typically occur with school or wings of schools built before 1986, where lead leaches from pipes, soldering, or faucets.
The Vermont Health Department’s goal with this program is to see how widespread the lead problem is and formulate a strategy to address it. In this Vermont Public Radio report, Department of Environmental Conservation Drinking Water Compliance Chief Ben Montross says:
“It’s really just investigatory to see what’s out there, and see what we’re dealing with, and then try to steer potentially a statewide approach, or just advice, to schools in the future.”
