New Database Documents Lead Issues In Cherry Hill Schools' Water

CHERRY HILL, NJ — The Cherry Hill Public School District is one of 61 school districts statewide that had too much lead discovered in their water in recent years, according to a new state database. All the schools in the district were tested in October 2016. At that time, elevated levels of lead were found in nine water outlets at five elementary schools in the district.

In response, the district replaced all water fountains in which any lead was found with a filtration system that includes both a bottle filling mechanism and a traditional water fountain. One water station was installed for every 100 occupants in each building, and any additional water fountains will be removed.

Plumbing fixtures in pre-K and kindergarten classrooms, as well as faculty rooms, nurses' offices, and kitchen sinks in which any lead was found were also replaced with filtration units attached to the water fountains themselves. Sinks in all classrooms were designated for hand washing only, with signage to indicate that.

Outlets at Bret Harte, James Johnson, Horace Mann, Joseph D. Sharp and Woodcrest elementary schools tested higher than the 15 parts per billion (ppb) allowed by the state. Outlets at the other schools tested below that level. Read more here: Cherry Hill Schools Roll Out Plan To Deal With Lead In Their Water

Gov. Phil Murphy announced on Thursday that the New Jersey Department of Education has launched a centralized database with lead-testing information from school districts.

The database also allows anyone to look up their own district to see the results of the most recent testing.

This initiative is part of a three-pronged approach announced last month by Murphy, alongside Rep. Josh Gottheimer, R-Bergen, to strengthen the state's response to lead testing and the remediation of elevated lead levels in drinking water in New Jersey schools.

Read more here: Lead In Water: New Database Shows Many NJ Schools Had Too Much