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The Tennessee Conservative [By Paula Gomes] –
Following reports that two Memphis-Shelby County Schools in Midtown were found to have elevated lead levels in their drinking water, the school district now says that more than twenty schools have been discovered to have unsafe lead levels.
In all, twenty-four schools in the Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) district, including two stadiums have been found to have lead levels that are more than twenty parts per billion.
In the state of Tennessee, the acceptable level of lead in drinking water established by the Lead and Copper Rule is no more than 15 parts billion. The EPA has a Maximum Contaminant Level Goal of 0 parts per billion, indicating that no level of lead is considered to be safe to ingest.
Like all school districts across the state, MSCS is responsible for testing the water for lead every other year in schools that were built before January 1st, 1998. Any water source found to exceed the Lead and Copper Rule must be taken out of service and remediated.
According to MSCS, permanent measures are under way to bring down levels and in the meantime, students and staff have access to safe drinking water either through bottled water or water filtration machines.
The affected MSCS properties are:
Bellevue Middle School
Bolton High Stadium
Central High School
Cromwell Elementary
Middle College
Ford Road Elementary
Geeter Middle School
Georgian Hills Elementary
Germantown High Stadium
Invictus Academy at Airways
Jackson Elementary
Kingsbury Middle
Northeast Prep Academy
Oak Forest Elementary
Peabody Elementary
Raleigh-Bartlett Meadows Elementary
Raleigh Egypt High
Raleigh Egypt Middle
Sheffield Career and Technical Center
Sheffield Elementary
Southwest Career and Technical School
Treadwell Middle
White Station High
Whitehaven Elementary STEM School
Of these, four are repeat offenders from 2019, and five others tested high two years later. In 2021, a kitchen sink at Middle College was found to have a 31 parts ber billion lead level and a water fountain at Sheffield Elementary had a lead level of 33.7 parts ber billion.
In 2019, when the district tested its water for lead in response to a new state law, dangerously high levels were found in 39 schools. The contaminated water was found in coolers, fountains, and sinks, leading to the district installing filters.
The problem was not limited to Memphis or Shelby County. At least ninety-four public schools across the state in thirty districts found high levels of lead in at least one water source that year. Not all the contaminated sources were for drinking water. Some were for washing hands, while others were used to either prepare food of clean dishes.
Starting in 2019 through 2020, MSCS students were given blood tests to determine if they had been exposed to lead but test results determined that they were not at risk.
Exposure to lead is a serious health concern with many well-documented adverse effects, especially in children under six. These include damage to the brain and nervous system, slowed development, behavior and learning difficulties, problems with speech and hearing. Children who have been exposed to lead may have lower IQ, have attention difficulties and underperform in school.
While symptoms are not always obvious, an easily available blood lead test can show if children have been overly exposed. Preventing further exposure allows the amount of lead detectable in blood levels to gradually decrease. However, if lead has been stored in bones, it can take decades to decrease.
At the end of 2024, The Tennessee Conservative reported that Memphis was home to half of the most poorly performing schools in the state.
Sources:
https://www.chalkbeat.org/tennessee/2019/11/12/21109226/the-water-is-fine-says-superintendent-after-39-memphis-schools-flagged-for-lead
https://tnedreport.com/2019/11/the-price-of-your-greed/
https://www.localmemphis.com/article/news/education/shelby-county-schools-lead-levels-drinking-water-test-results/522-d9053084-9923-4aa1-ac71-f6e105780608
https://drive.google.com/file/d/14mmAQwQBeFZ61onMMzXLrzMayEJGFDxl/view?pli=1
About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
One Response
Explains part of their stupidity??