Editor’s note: This commentary is by Megan McBride, of Shelburne. She is a mother of two young children and has a background in sustainable development and international environmental policy.
[M]y kids love school water fountains. We rarely walk by one without someone pulling on my sleeve, complaining of a sudden, dire thirst. I used to assume that the biggest risks these fountains held were a drenched shirt and some questionable germs. I now know that they may also contain lead.
Lead is a potent neurotoxin that accumulates in the body over time. Even low levels of lead can have serious health impacts, particularly for children. Exposure to lead can cause a wide array of negative health outcomes, including damage to the nervous system, a decrease in IQ, learning disabilities, attention disorders, and kidney damage. The impacts of lead poisoning are irreversible and life-long.
You cannot see, taste or smell lead in water; testing is the only way to know whether the water from a drinking fountain or tap is safe. Testing is a simple process, but something that is not currently required in most Vermont schools. Unfortunately, we cannot assume that school water is safe to drink. In fact, in a 2018 pilot program that tested water in 16 Vermont schools, every single school in the study was found to have at least two taps with lead levels above the 1 part per billion (ppb) advisory level recommended by the Vermont Department of Health and the American Academy of Pediatrics. These elevated lead levels pose a risk to both students and staff.
Vermont lawmakers are currently working on S.40, a bill that would require schools to test water for lead and remediate contaminated water sources. However, legislators are still debating a critical piece of the bill, the “action level,” or level of lead contamination that will require remediation. In other words, legislators are trying to decide how much lead they are willing to allow in our school drinking water. Lawmakers may be undecided, but scientists and health experts are unanimous: there is no safe level of lead. The Legislature should listen to the experts and pass S.40 with an action level of 1 ppb.
Taking lead out of school water is not a complicated policy issue – a well-known neurotoxin has been found in school drinking water and we have the technology to identify and fix contaminated taps. Our children deserve to have safe places to learn and grow, they should not have to worry when they take a drink of water after gym class or fill their water bottles before recess. The Legislature should protect our children and families by following the recommendations of the Vermont Department of Health and the American Academy of Pediatrics and set the action level of S.40 at 1 ppb.
