SYRACUSE — The drinking water in Syracuse schools meets government guidelines for lead levels, recent testing confirms, according to Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner. Miner on May 20 announced the results of lead tests in public and private elementary and high schools in the city of Syracuse. The city’s Department of Water tested a total of […]
SYRACUSE — The drinking water in Syracuse schools meets government guidelines for lead levels, recent testing confirms, according to Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner.
Miner on May 20 announced the results of lead tests in public and private elementary and high schools in the city of Syracuse.
The city’s Department of Water tested a total of 45 schools and 43 tested “safely” under guidelines from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), according to a news release that Miner’s office issued that same day.
Test results at two schools — Delaware Elementary School and the Syracuse Academy of Science High School — found elevated levels of lead in individual sinks not used for drinking water.
The initial tests of Syracuse schools were conducted in March and subsequent tests in April of this year at Miner’s request.
The water department had suggested to Miner that it should “proactively” test Syracuse high schools and grammar schools following the discovery of lead in some New York schools, including in Ithaca.
Miner notified Syracuse’s city, charter, and Catholic schools and asked if they’d like to have their water system tested for lead, she said while speaking to reporters at Syracuse City Hall on May 20.
They all agreed, said Miner.
“Most Holy Rosary had actually arranged for it to already be done, so they did not partake in this offer,” she adds.
The process
The City of Syracuse Department of Water tested two samples from each of the city’s school buildings: one nearest to the intake of water, one furthest away.
“What this protocol does is it delivers an understanding of the entire system, which can determine if a problem might exist,” said Miner.
Testing close to the intake of water determines if there’s an issue with the service line and the site furthest away from the source indicates if the building’s internal plumbing has an issue, she added.
The testing found 43 schools had lead levels below the EPA school-building standard of 20 parts per billion (ppb).
Two additional schools — Delaware Elementary School and the Syracuse Academy of Science High School — each had one sample register above the EPA standard.
In both instances, the fixtures aren’t “principally” used for drinking water or food preparation, according to Miner’s office.
The city contacted the Syracuse City School District, asking that Delaware not use any water from that source.
“That testing site was not located in a place where students would get water normally,” said Miner.
The department then went and tested every fixture in Delaware Elementary. The testing found all fixtures were below the proper lead levels, with the exception of one room — a janitor’s closet.
“We suggested to the school district that [it] remove the sink and the fixtures there and replace them, which they have assured us they have done,” said Miner.
In the Syracuse Academy of Science, a sink in a science lab included a fixture that originally had a high reading.
“Again, it was one reading … in one room,” Miner emphasized.
The department went back and tested all locations in the school building, and the ensuing test results “were all below the EPA requirements for what is acceptable levels of lead.”
The city suggested the Syracuse Academy of Science replace the science-lab sink that generated the high lead test.
“[School officials] have said that they are going to do that just as a matter of complete and total extra precaution,” said Miner.
Main construction
The construction of mains in Syracuse makes it “less vulnerable to issues with lead,” Miner’s office said.
Water mains are generally made of cast iron “and most recently, plastic-based material,” Miner told reporters.
The Water Department maintains records on the age of all service lines. No Syracuse City School District school or private school has a lead service line, according to Miner’s news release on the issue.
Service lines, which connect individual properties to the water main, were sometimes made of lead in the years before 1930, the news release indicated.
If Syracuse water customers would like to know more about their service line, Miner’s office said they can call the Department of Water at (315) 473-2609 for more information.
Upon request, the Water Department will test individual properties with a lead service line to determine their levels, Miner’s office added.
Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com