Lead levels prompt lawmakers to act
quality tests of school drinking fountains at several California schools have shown potential harmful levels of lead and spurred state legislators to craft bills requiring testing.
Water Assembly Bill 746, sponsored by Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher (D-San Diego), won approval by the Assembly Environmental Quality committee in the spring and advanced to the Appropriations Committee, according to East County Magazine, a nonprofit publication in the San Diego inland area. It has also passed the state Senate Education committee.
“Lead exposure is unacceptable for children and teachers who could be poisoned by drinking water from fountains at school,” Gonzalez Fletcher said. “Schools need to be proactive making sure they’re drinking lead-free water.”
Since dangerous levels of lead were discovered in water at Flint, Mich. nearly three years ago that prompted a state of emergency and criminal charges, many towns across the U.S. increased testing of water in schools.
Imperial County Office of Education (ICOE) did some research and provided a copy of the water quality report for the city of El Centro, noted Todd Evangelist, director of development and community relations. According to the report, the El Centro Water Treatment Facility shows no detectable trace of lead for samples tested. The threshold for lead is 15 parts per billion.
Also in the report, Hector Munoz, water treatment facility supervisor, noted they routinely monitor for contaminants according to state and federal laws and maximum contaminant levels are set at very stringent levels. The local water source is the Colorado River via the All-American Canal and Imperial Irrigation District infrastructure.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) noted, there are no safe levels of lead. Lead effects children the most because their bodies are still undergoing development. Health effects include: reduced IQ and attention span, learning disabilities, poor classroom performances, hyperactivity, impaired growth and hearing loss.
Yet, the El Centro Water Treatment Facility takes precautions for providing the highest quality drinking water. But it cannot control the variety of materials in plumbing components, some of which are partially made of lead. When water has been sitting in pipes for a while, people can minimize exposure to lead by flushing the tap for 30 seconds to two minutes before drinking or cooking with it. For those wanting to have their water tested, they can contact the Safe Drinking Water Hotline: 800-426-4791.
ICOE’s Evangelist also spoke with Raul Martinez, director of Facilities at National School District in National City. Some early instances of lead were at the San Ysidro School District, so National City tested their water.
They randomly tested fountains and performed 300 tests and spent significant time to document the process performed by their water supplier, the Sweetwater Authority, at school sites.
In January, Golden State Water Company (GSW) supplying service to 500 schools statewide, including Calipatria and Niland, announced it will work with each to test water. GSW tests for more than 230 elements according to the EPA’s Lead and Copper Rule. GSW has established a record of meeting standards set by that rule and ensures lead levels remain below the drinking Action Level of 15 ppb. If water exceeds the Action Level, it triggers more frequent testing and possible corrosion control treatment.
Dawn White, GSW water quality manager, noted the company works closely with schools to test for compliance with state and federal lead standards.
“Earlier this year we collaborated with Calipatria Unified School District to test water and there was no detection of lead in sample results,” she said.
Companion bill AB 1316 by Assemblyman Bill Quirk (D-Hayward) will require all children to have their blood lead level screened.
But GSW noted that elevated lead levels in blood samples cannot specifically be linked to lead in water. Lead in paint, plumbing and contaminated soil means children are still exposed to the toxic metal.
Under current law, the California Water Boards program enables any school to have its water tested at no cost. AB 746 would reimburse any district for costs associated with testing if proved negative. Gonzalez Fletcher noted out of 13,000 California schools statewide, only 1,200 requested testing.