Andrew Martins, Managing Editor
High concentration levels of lead in 15 water fixtures throughout the Hillsborough Township Public School District at the start of the 2017-18 school year has district officials weighing possible remediation options over the coming weeks.
During the first board meeting of the new school year on Monday, the district’s Buildings and Grounds Director Wilson Quintero reported that more than a dozen water fountains and faucets were found to have higher than normal lead levels.
“We conducted 29 additional samples throughout the district – 14 of those samples came back free of lead and 15 units came back elevated after the first draw,” Quintero said.
Over the course of a year, officials said more than 800 water tests have been conducted throughout the district, with a focus on the removal and remediation of high lead levels and other contaminants.
Quintero said that once the 15 fixtures were found to have lead levels that were above legal limits, efforts were made to replace any affected faucets, bubblers and filtration systems. Once completed, a 30 second “flush test” was conducted at each site.
Of those tested, 11 fixtures no longer had lead issues, while the remaining four fixtures tested higher than initially reported. Those results pointed to a lead problem that could be “further down the stream – further down the pipes,” Quintero said.
Superintendent Dr. Jorden Schiff said fixing the 11 that failed on a first draw test would be “relatively inexpensive,” while the four that came back with higher levels could prove to me a little more involved.
Business Administrator Aiman Mahmoud said the district will begin working with its operations committee to discuss possible remediation options for the 15 affected fixtures.
“We do have some more work to do with some of these fountains that tested high,” Mahmoud said.
Quintero said the next steps for the district are to conduct a plumbing diagram and take water assessments at each of those units with some help from the district’s environmental consulting partner, EDI.
“We will be taking an analysis of the water samples…and with the assistance of EDI, we will be able to analyze the water through all the units we tested and then create an action plan to remediate each unit,” he said.
Officials said the results of the district’s water testing efforts have been posted on its website. Schiff said principals in schools with affected water fixtures have been ordered to close off any affected units. In addition, bottled water will be provided to classrooms near contaminated water fountains.
“Moving forward, we’re going to plan ahead and continue the progress on buildings and grounds,” Quintero said. He said it will be about another three to four weeks until a second batch of testing is conducted.
Along with lead water remediation, Mahmoud announced that the district’s mold remediation efforts at Hillsborough High School were successful.
Recently, 79 air samples were taken, with only one room needing further retesting. Room 152 came back with some traces of mold, but was later determined not to have an elevated level of contamination after a second test.
Though all affected areas have been cleared for occupancy for the school year, Mahmoud said some areas have been located that have the potential for future mold problems.
“We still have rooms at the high school that still have high levels of humidity and we have rooms that have some ceiling tiles that are buckling, so we have some other issues that we have to address,” Mahmoud said. “I don’t want to give a false sense of security that we’re totally clean as far as the high school and its conditions. However, we are working with EDI to tackle any issues that come about.”
