On September 4, the PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center released a new study showing how nine Pennsylvania school districts regularly expose children to lead in school drinking water by violating state law, skirting reporting requirements and ignoring best practices.

The school districts include Altoona Area School District, Bethlehem Area School District, Harrisburg School District, Hazleton Area School District, Norristown Area School District, Scranton, Upper Darby School District, West Chester Area School District and York City School District.

The study found districts regularly violating state laws and best practices, including--

-- Hindering access to lead testing results;

-- Failing to test school drinking fountains for potential lead contamination as required under Pennsylvania law;

-- Failing to test an adequate number of drinking outlets to detect potential lead contamination;

-- Failing to provide positive test results to the Pennsylvania Department of Education as required by state law;

-- Using loopholes in Pennsylvania’s existing requirements to avoid testing and reporting for lead; and

-- Failing to provide sufficient access to drinking water as required under state law.

“Pennsylvania’s school water safety laws are sorely outdated. We know a lot more about the dangers of lead than we used to, so it’s absurd how many schools aren’t using current best practices to ensure our kids’ safety,” noted PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center’s Executive Director David Masur.  “It's time to dump 'Test and Fix" since it’s clearly not working. Instead, it’s time to replace all Pennsylvania’s lead-laden fountains with lead-filtering water bottle filling stations and fountains.”

The findings released in the new study are based on data collected through a series of Right-to-Know requests submitted to nine of Pennsylvania largest school districts. They reinforce the “F” grade that PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center gave to Pennsylvania in a recent report on drinking water and lead.

Based on these findings, the PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center is calling on members of the General Assembly to immediately implement a pending bipartisan proposal (Senate Bill 986 (Robinson-R-Allegheny) and House Bill 2011 (Greene-D-Philadelphia) that would require all Pennsylvania school districts to replace old drinking fountains that pose a risk of lead contamination with lead-filtering water bottle filling stations and drinking fountains.

The legislation also includes funding to help Pennsylvania school districts cover the cost of these much-needed upgrades to protect kids’ health.

The group also recommends that individual school districts across the state voluntarily replace all old drinking fountains currently installed in their buildings with lead-filtering water bottle filling stations and lead-filtering drinking fountains in order to properly protect school children from the threat of lead.

“If school districts won’t voluntarily implement the widely accepted best practices for protecting our children, then it’s urgent that our elected officials in Harrisburg move swiftly to implement a statewide solution to this well-documented problem,” noted Masur. “It’s time to get the lead out and pass Senate Bill 986, which will ensure safe drinking water for our children.”

Click Here for a copy of the study.  Click Here for the complete announcement.

NewsClips:

-- PA Capital-Star: Environmental Group Claims PA Water Testing Requirements Don’t Protect Students From Lead

-- Altoona Mirror: Altoona Area School District Disputes Claims Drinking Water May Be Unsafe For Students

-- MCall: Bethlehem Area Schools Not Doing Enough To Protect Students From Lead Contaminated Drinking Water

-- Inquirer: PA’s Law Regulating Lead In School Drinking Water Too Weak, Advocates Say

-- WHYY: Pennsylvania Law Allows Schools To Skip Lead Testing Their Water, Report Says

-- StateImpactPA - Rachel McDevitt: Report Calls For Tougher Lead Testing Standards For PA School Districts

-- Tribune-Democrat: Report: PA Schools, Law Fail To Limit Lead Exposure In School Drinking Water

-- PennLive: Lack Of Water Test Reporting Exposes Students To Lead In Harrisburg, Other Schools

[Posted: September 4, 2024]

9/9/2024