By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
LAWRENCE — Elevated levels of lead have been found in some water fountains and sink faucets in three of the four elementary schools, and water has been shut off at those locations, according to Lawrence Township school district officials.
The affected schools are the Eldridge Park School, the Lawrenceville Elementary School and the Slackwood Elementary School. Water testing results are pending at the Ben Franklin Elementary School, the Lawrence Intermediate School, the Lawrence Middle School and Lawrence High School.
The school district hired PARS Environmental to test the water for lead contamination last month, in response to concerns about lead in drinking water. All of the drinking water fountains, kitchen faucets, bathroom faucets and science room faucets in each of the schools have been tested.
Elevated levels of lead were found in isolated locations in the three schools, officials said. The school district is providing bottled drinking water to students in those schools until the problem is corrected.
Additional testing was conducted Wednesday morning, before students and staff arrived, to isolate the problem and validate the initial results. School district officials are narrowing down the source of the contamination, and anticipate having to change plumbing fixtures and pipes.
Some of the sinks in the kitchens tested positive for lead, officials said. Tests are being conducted on the dishwashers, and dishes will be hand-washed in the unaffected sinks until all of the water testing results have been received.
The majority of food served in the district does not come into contact with water, officials said. Many items are frozen and delivered to the school kitchens for defrosting and serving. Steps are being taken to ensure that fresh food will be prepared by using unaffected water.
