The Seattle Times: Seattle schools approve policy on water quality

Positive action like these must be fast not till later..

Seattle schools approve policy on water quality

By Sanjay Bhatt
Seattle Times staff reporter

After months of deliberations, the Seattle School Board approved a new policy to ensure all schools have some of the cleanest school drinking water in the country — at a total cost of more than $12 million over the next three years.

The policy requires Superintendent Raj Manhas to report by March 10 on how he will execute it, establishes a citizen-oversight committee and ensures that future district levies will ask taxpayers for money to pay for water-quality projects.

Yesterday's action came almost a year after the board, confronted by Wedgwood Elementary School parents with orange water from the school, unanimously decided to test the district's drinking water.

Test results showed about one-quarter of fountains districtwide had lead levels of more than 20 parts per billion (ppb). That's the limit the federal government recommends, but doesn't require, for schools. More than a dozen district schools also had such high levels of iron in their drinking water that the district plans to replace all or a portion of their water pipes.

In the past year, officials from public-health agencies cautioned parents against overreacting to the lead levels and stressed it was unlikely the tainted water had hurt any child. Read More...
The Seattle Times: Seattle schools approve policy on water quality