Tuesday Top of the Scroll: Oakland fails to tell families and staff about high levels of lead at 22 schools
Nearly 200 water faucets in Oakland public schools had levels of lead that exceeded district standards, sparking outrage among staff who criticized district officials this week for failing to immediately notify school communities about results found earlier this summer and spring. Out of the 1,083 faucets and fountains tested, nearly 83% fell below the district’s limit of 5 parts per billion, or ppb, meaning they were safe, but 17% were above the limit. Federal standards are more lenient than Oakland’s standards, at 15 parts per billion, but 70 taps in the districts also failed to meet that requirement, in some cases by a wide margin. … While the risk to students might be low, it’s unclear how long taps with high levels of lead remained in use after the district obtained results. … Districts across California have been testing water for lead under a voluntary program since 2017, and as required by state law since 2019. And they have been finding it in hundreds of hallways, bathrooms, classrooms and other locations, especially in older buildings.
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