Berlin District Has 51 Taps Above The 15 ppb Threshold

by Thaddeus Flint
Water from the High School/Middle School and the Elementary School in the Berlin School District has tested positive for lead, it was reported at the Tuesday, November 15 School Board meeting.
According the District’s Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds, Cyril Grant, 17 of 39 samples from the Elementary School and 34 of 94 samples at the High School/Middle School came back with lead amounts higher than the New York State accepted level of 15 parts per billion (ppb).[private]
The levels of lead detected were, however, not thought to be overly high.
“The vast majority are 20, 40, 50 parts per billion, said Grant who pointed out that other Districts have had test returns in the “hundreds.”
Voorheesville Elementary in Albany County, for example, had one tap testing over 100 times the State limit.
None of the water sources with elevated lead levels at either school was from a drinking fountain.
Only one water sample at the Elementary School was from a source that could have been used in cooking or drinking. This was in a kitchen boiler pot which was no longer being used anyway. It has since been capped off. The Elementary School’s water fountains were not working at the time of the testing as they have been shut down until the Town of Berlin’s water supply is certified PFOA free. At that time, the fountains there will be tested for lead as well.
At the High School/Middle School, of the 34 failed sources, 28 were taps in the science labs.
Board Member Kellie Kaschak, who was previously the School’s Nurse, pointed out that one tap in the Nurse’s office might also be used from time to time as a drinking source, mostly in taking medications. Kaschak, and the rest of the Board, did not appear overly concerned with the levels found.
Board President Frank Zwack noted it was “curious” that some taps tested positive right next to other taps that tested negative.
“So it’s not our water source,” said Zwack.
The source of the lead is believe to be fittings in the water line.
“Overall our lead results are very good,” said Grant.
A similar test for copper came back negative at all sources in both facilities.
At this point, the District is required to submit the results to the New York State Health Department, post warning notices on all the problem taps, and notify parents and Staff within 10 days.
The District will also need to coordinate with an architect or licensed engineer to put together a long term plan to remediate the problem areas.
Grant pointed out the school district in Chatham replaced every faucet.
Other local school districts, including New Lebanon, Hoosick Falls, Brittonkill, Averill Park, and Schodack have also found similar elevated levels of lead in the water.
The BCS District was also recently the subject of a surprise audit of possible hazardous materials by the Department of Environmental Conservation as part of its state-wide Clean Sweep program. The program is designed to help entities that do not qualify to participate in residential Household Hazardous Waste collection events get rid of problem materials.
“They were exceptionally impressed with the District,” reported Grant. Only one problem area was found—storage of old fluorescent bulb—which has already been remedied.
All is not just lead and old light bulbs at BCS though.
“We need to brag about what’s good here,” Zwack told administrators, staff, and the single parent in the audience who attended the meeting. “There’s a lot of treasures here that are going on in these two buildings.”
One of those treasures is the decrease in the use of drugs by students in the District.
According to High School/Middle School Principal Dr. Cathy Allain, when she first started work at BCS “we had the highest rate of drug use in Rensselaer County. And now we are right near the bottom.” Allain credited Biffy Cahill and the TRACS program (Together Reducing Alcohol and Drugs in our Community) with “how dramatically our drug numbers are lowering.”
Dr. Allain also praised students and staff for the recent Veteran’s Day Assembly. Local veterans were treated to a “most amazing” feast before the assembly where they were greeted by a crowd of flag waving students, Rensselaer County Executive, Kathy Jimino, and Senator Kathleen Marchione’s representative in charge of Veteran’s Affairs, Dan Casale.
“It was quite a moving assembly,” said Dr. Allain.
The next scheduled meeting will be a Round Table Discussion, at the Berlin Elementary School on December 1 at 7:15 pm.
The next monthly Board meeting will take place Tuesday December 20 at the High School/Middle School at 7:15 pm.[/private]