District 303 Replacing, Repairing Water Fountains After Unsafe Levels of Lead Found in 16 Buildings

St. Charles District 303 officials are in the process of repairing or replacing 24 water fountains at area schools after recent tests showed unsafe levels of lead in the water coming from those fountains, the Daily Herald reports. The school district spent $33,000 to test all 19 of its buildings and found lead problems at all of its schools except Corron and Norton Creek elementary schools and Thompson Middle School.

About 79 percent of water fountains and faucets at schools showed no problems but the water fountains that did have issues will be fixed before school starts on Wednesday, according to a press release from the school district.

The testing also revealed 106 faucets with lead problem. District officials said those sinks are only used occasionally by staff or students, and include the faucets used in science classrooms. The district will post labels at the sinks that read, “hand washing only.”

In total, the school district tested 608 locations for lead issues.

“Due to events around the country and in the area, quality of water is a topic of conversation,” said Superintendent Donald Schlomann. “We decided to test all the water fountains and sink faucets in the District so that parents can be certain we are providing a safe environment for their students.”

The testing indicated that the water supply to all District 303 buildings is safe and tested under the Environmental Protection Agency’s action level of 15 parts per billion. Here is more from the District 303 press release:

Once it is determined water from the municipal supply is below the EPA action level of 15 ppb, lead in water is most likely to come from the solder used to connect copper pipes. Lead from solder can collect in stationary water contained in a pipe, possibly leading to a reading above the EPA’s action level of 15 parts per billion. If lead is present in a pipe supplying a faucet that is not used overnight, running the faucet for a few moments will flush any lead that may be present. The testing that is being conducted is done on the first draw from a fountain or faucet that has not been used for several hours.

More via the Daily Herald and District 303