RUNNING HEAD: CLEAN DRINKING WATER AND SCHOOLS 1

Clean Drinking Water and Schools

Erika Perez

Stockton University
CLEAN DRINKING WATER AND SCHOOLS 2

Introduction

In our schools, we often expect to have the basic necessities met. However, clean

drinking water is becoming increasingly difficult to obtain for all schools. The accessibility of

clean drinking water has become an issue especially in schools of low income. This paper aims

to explore how this social justice issue manifested by assessing the policy factors or lack thereof

that led to unclean water levels in multiple school districts and finding possible solutions to

prevent these occurrences.

Problems

Historically, many underground infrastructures moving water from one location to the

next were constructed with lead. Then in 1978, the government banned the use of lead based

paint after it was found to adversely affect human health (Klibanoff, 2016). Lead had a negative

connotation in the public’s eye but nothing was done to replace the infrastructure. It was not until

infrastructure began to age, which allowed lead to leach through the pipes and contaminate

drinking water, that Americans begin to notice the gravity of the matter (e.g Flint Michigan).

These lead contamination incidents have been reported all across the country but the first

reported school based incidents originated in Seattle. Four elementary schools in Seattle reported

having dangerously high levels of lead in their water. At first, the school district did not directly

address the issue and “pushed it under the rug” because of financial issues. The act of replacing

or renovating these structures takes time, labor, and money (Bowman, 2004). Because of many

years of inaction on the matter, these Seattle schools have been forced to pay the consequences

of reconstructing and replacing the entire water pipe structure (Bowman, 2004).
CLEAN DRINKING WATER AND SCHOOLS 3

The costs associated with remediating lead contaminated water is high. One Seattle

school administration estimated their proposed cleanup project which consisted of replacing

pipes, distributing water bottles, and testing the contamination, will take up to 3 years and cost

roughly 15 million dollars (Buchanan, 2006). In Detroit, desperate state lawmakers approved

around 49 million dollars in emergency funding to keep their schools open during their water

crisis. Officials are still unsure of the total cost of repairs for these 19 Detroit schools

(Associated Press, 2016). In Baltimore, schools had to pay up to 2 million for repairing their

water systems (Bowman, 2004).

In the previously mentioned cases, the main chemical found was lead. Truly any amount

of lead can affect the human body but the federal standard for lead is 15 parts per billion

(Warren, 2019). However these standards only apply to full grown adults and disregard children,

who are proportionally different from adults and therefore respond differently to exposure.

Children are generally more vulnerable and susceptible to adverse effects which span from

stunted developmental growth, lower intelligence, behavioral issues, and decreased organ

functionality (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2011). Their increased vulnerability to

chemicals needs to be taken into consideration especially when schools fail to restructure water

system because of high costs.

Although federal law does not require schools to test their water systems, the parents,

staff members, and other local community members have taken on this responsibility. In the

Seattle school incident, concerned parents took initiative by collecting water samples and

bringing these samples to laboratories where they were found to have exceeded the established

lead standards. After demanding action from officials, their voices were left unheard until the
CLEAN DRINKING WATER AND SCHOOLS 4

concern was brought to the school board where a state legislator immediately took action

(Bowman, 2004). Another case in Providence, Rhode Island involved local tenants who sued the

state and city officials for their decision to build a school on top of a former landfill (Teicher,

1999). All in all, these issues are more likely to be brought up by local community members and

concerned parents rather than state and federal officials.

Policy options

In 1976 Congress passed The Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA) which deals with

chemical management specifically the regulation of new and existing chemicals. Since its

inception, the TSCA has only dealt with the regulation of 5 chemicals despite the constant

manufacturing of other ones. The American Academy of Pediatrics has criticized the TSCA for

failing to set standards for vulnerable populations like children and pregnant women. Because of

these inadequacies, the EPA has had to implement voluntary programs. However, these

programs have no significant regulatory impact because they are not required to compile

information over chemical safety (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2011).

The EPA and other agencies work together to set standards, but federal legislation does

not mandate yearly exams to test and detect chemicals in water (Bowman, 2004). The Safe

Drinking Water Act states federal prisons and military facilities are required to conduct

water-quality tests but omits schools from this responsibility (Bowman, 2004). Overall, the

federal government fails to protect students in America from environmental hazards because

under the Constitution, education is not a right. As a result, states tend to trivialize the needs of

schools, especially those in poorer districts (Sampson, 2012).

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Unfortunately, lead is not the only issue. Asbestos is the number one most

environmentally hazardous chemical that plague schools today. Unlike lead, asbestos

contamination has been regulated under the federal government by the Asbestos Hazard

Emergency Response (AHERA) of 1986. This policy requires school districts to inspect schools

for asbestos every 3 years and for schools to prepare detailed plans to reduce its amount. Schools

who violate these federal guidelines must pay a serious fine (Buchanan, 2006).

Selecting among alternatives

In an effort to respond to lead infested drinking water problems, school boards had to

come up with creative solutions. One Seattle school board went as far as adopting a stricter lead

standard of 10 parts per billion versus waiting for the EPA to set new standards. The same school

board created a Water Quality Advisory Committee composed of parents, health experts, and

school staff that creates a space to discuss and deal with water issues before it becomes a major

problem (Buchanan, 2006).

Another solution can stem from the students themselves. Researchers tested the ability of

middle school students to critically assess scientific evidence and use reasoning skills to address

problems and solutions. In this experiment, students were posed with water quality and

sustainability issues which required socio-scientific (science and social related) evidence

(Belland et al, 2016). In a society where the issue of climate change, global warming, and other

environmental related problems are at the forefront of issues impacting our generation, there is a

need for the upcoming generation who will be inheriting this earth to discuss for themselves the
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validity of presented evidence and formulate a scientific sound and socially just perspective.

Initiating student conversations on water quality is just the beginning.

The final alternative solution is involving youth perceptions in the policy and planning

processes. The authors of this article wanted to understand the unique perspectives of youth who

witness daily environmental injustices within their neighborhoods more so than adults or

professionals. Their unique stories can directly impact how researchers investigate the

relationship between socioeconomic and the environment and can prompt further investigation

into how community remediation can improve the lives of young black youth (Teixeria and

Zuberi, 2016).

Recommendations

Based on my cumulative assessment on the issue, I would recommend that the federal

government require schools to set up committees of experts who actively protect and maintain

clean water and food standards for the students through frequent testing and repairs of old

infrastructure. A Seattle school (Buchanan, 2006) has done this but there is no current research

or analyses indicating that it solved the issue. Nonetheless this recommendation is a way

forward. By creating a committee comprised of experts on water quality and water testing, we

can have much more confidence that water levels are up to par with the federal standards.

In the future, there needs to be a way to incorporate student and youth voices within the

above mentioned committees. Accountability and transparency are essential for reliable and

honest government. By including students in the conversation, a bridge opens up that allows for

effective communication among students and the school board ensuring that the concerns of
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students do not go unheard. Overall, students and youth leaders need to be the ones who rally for

clean water because they are the ones who will be impacted by these hazards the most.

Evaluation and monitoring

The federal government needs to take charge to ensure all the committees are meeting the

needs of the school. The committees need to be checking in every 6 months or so. Measuring

whether changes were successful, occurs when committees report to federal officials that

contaminant levels in the water systems are below the set federal standards. When all schools

have reported levels below this standard then we can say that the changes were successful. If

committees report water system levels that exceed the contamination standards, then the

government needs to immediately send over help to fix the issue. If the federal government

cannot take action, then the power must fall under the state and if not the state then the school

board needs to make the necessary moves to ensure their school system and their students have

access to clean and safe drinking water.

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References

American Academy of Pediatrics (2011). Policy Statement-Chemical-Management Policy:

Prioritizing Children’s Health. ​Pediatrics,​ ​127(​ 5), 983–990.

https://doi-org.ezproxy.stockton.edu/10.1542/peds.2011-0523

Associated Press (2016). High Copper, Lead Levels Found in 19 Detroit Schools. ​Education

Week​, ​35​(29), 4. Retrieved from

https://login.ezproxy.stockton.edu/login?URL=http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.stock

ton.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=114922806&site=ehost-live

Belland, B., Gu, J., Kim, N., & Turner, D. (2016). An ethnomethodological perspective on how

middle school students addressed a water quality problem. ​Educational Technology

Research & Development​, ​64​(6), 1135–1161.

https://doi-org.ezproxy.stockton.edu/10.1007/s11423-016-9451-8

Bowman, D. H. (2004). Schools On Alert Over Water Quality. ​Education Week,​ ​23(​ 27), 1–27.

Retrieved from

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ton.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=12675231&site=ehost-live

Buchanan, B. (2006). The High Cost of Cleanup. ​American School Board Journal​, ​193​(12),

22–25. Retrieved from

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ton.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=23041348&site=ehost-live
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Klibanoff, E. (2016, February 26). Lead paint was banned 40 years ago. Why is it still a problem

in PA. cities? Retrieved from

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n-pa-cities/

Teicher, S. A. (1999, November 4). Schools atop dumps: environmental racism? ​Christian

Science Monitor,​ p. 3. Retrieved from

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ton.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=2436953&site=ehost-live

Teixeira, S., & Zuberi, A. (2016). Mapping the racial inequality in place: Using youth

perceptions to identify unequal exposure to neighborhood environmental hazards.

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Warren, M. S. (2019, April 12). The places across N.J. where too much lead has been found in

the water. Retreieved from

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