Working together to protect kids from lead in schools

The dangers of lead exposure for children are well known and many schools across Montana have made great strides to protect students and staff from lead in drinking water. But a number of Montana schools have not yet taken action and the possibility of lead in school drinking water continues to be a serious concern.

Children are particularly at risk because their growing bodies absorb more lead than adults and the risks from lead include anemia, kidney and brain damage, as well as learning disabilities and decreased growth.

 Because children spend a large share of their childhood in schools, it is extremely important to provide safe drinking water. Some schools may not even be aware of the danger because even when water entering a building meets safety standards for lead concentrations, older plumbing within schools could contribute to elevated lead levels in the drinking water. 

In Montana, testing for lead began in 2020 in accredited K-12 schools where students can get drinking water. As of April, 487 school facilities (buildings) have tested for lead out of 591 in the state, leaving 104 schools — in both large and small communities — that have not yet completed the testing. 

Fortunately, funding and assistance is available to help make sure all Montana schools can first test their drinking water and then take preventative steps if needed to eliminate any dangerous levels of lead. 

For testing, an EPA grant supports free sampling for lead in drinking water for any Montana school. The schools can hire someone to do the testing and invoice the Montana Department of Environmental Quality.

For schools where lead tests exceed the state standard, we supported and helped pass an amendment during the 2023 Legislature that provides funding that will cover the cost of labor and supplies for new faucets, drinking fountains or water bottle filling stations. Using this state program, we can work with parents, local communities and schools to keep our schools and children safe.

Here are the details: The Legislature approved $3.7 million for the replacement program which is available to any school that needs to upgrade its water drinking facilities. Each school building qualifies for up to $100,000 to replace water faucets, water fountains and purchase new bottle filling stations, with up to a quarter of this amount available for labor costs.

The funding should help most schools greatly improve their drinking water. According to the Montana Department of Environmental Quality, a bottle filling station costs roughly $2,500 and faucets run from $300-$500 each.

One of the major challenges now is to help the remaining schools test and fix their drinking water as needed. Parents, teachers and school administrators should check with Montana Department of Environmental Quality for more information, or contact any of us, to learn the status of their school and how to participate.

Lead is a danger to our children’s health, but working together we can address this problem and help ensure that our kids learn in a safe and secure environment.

Sen. Janet Ellis, D-Helena, Rep. Paul Tuss, D-Havre, Rep. Melissa Romano, D-Helena, Rep. Mark Thane, D-Missoula.