pU.S. Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D- N.Y., announced new legislation to help public schools test drinking water for lead./ppSen. Schumer said that the more than 60 water sources for Ithaca schools that tested positive for lead show a need for statewide testing./ppHe announced the legislation Wednesday; it would create a federal grant program for schools that choose to test for lead./pp“Giving schools the resources to test the quality of kids’ drinking water is the right thing to do because lead poisoning is easily prevented,” Sen. Schumer said. “Every drop of water that comes from a school’s faucet should be pure, safe and clean, and this legislation helps make that goal crystal clear.”/ppThe senator said higher levels of lead were found in more than 50 samples taken in Ithaca at the Caroline Elementary School, and in 11 samples taken at the Enfield Elementary School found lead-water levels were found to be over 15 parts per billion, which is considered to be actionable by the federal Environmental Protection Agency./ppSchools serviced by private well water, like the two elementary schools./pp“The other 10 school buildings within the district are serviced by a public municipal water source and were never required to complete this kind of lead testing,” Mr. Schumer said. “This discrepancy means other schools across the state may be slipping through the cracks and therefore contain lead as well.” /p
↧