Back to School:

Few CA Schools Have Tested for Lead Despite Aid

Last week, drinking water fixtures at Grant Union High School in Sacramento were shut off after elevated levels of lead and copper were found in the water.

Grant Union High School is not the first school to experience risky lead levels in its drinking water; it is merely the most recent. The water quality issues the Sacramento school is experiencing should serve as a wake-up call to all California schools, the vast majority of which have yet to take advantage of the State Water Resource Control Board’s lead testing program for schools.

In January of last year, the State Water Resources Control Board’s Division of Drinking Water (DDW) announced the program, which encourages California schools to work with their local water providers to sample for the presence of lead in their drinking water. Under this program, if a K-12 school official requests lead testing its public water system is responsible for collecting water samples within 90 days of the request, having the samples analyzed by an ELAP-accredited laboratory, and reporting the results to the school within two business days of receiving the results—all free of charge to the school . The water system is required to collect up to 5 samples at each school requesting assistance.

However, 67% of the State’s 1,026 school districts have not taken advantage of the testing program to determine whether or not their water fixtures are delivering unsafe levels of lead to students and school staff... (read more)

From the Ashes:

Wildfire Effects on Water Quality

A parched preceding year paired with exceptionally hot summer months set California up for a disastrous and historic 2018 fire season. So far in 2018, Cal Fire has recorded over 876,400 acres burned. That’s more than four times the acreage burned compared to this time last year, which Cal Fire reported as just over 228,800 acres.

It is obvious that these fires are a threat to people, wildlife, structures, and our heroic firefighters, but what is less obvious is the danger they pose to our water quality.

California’s forests supply more than 60 percent of the State’s water. According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), “wildfires can compromise water quality both during active burning and for months and years after the fire has been contained.” While the fire is raging, ash can settle on lakes and reservoirs used for drinking water supplies. But even after the fire is extinguished, storms can further contaminate water supplies... (read more)

What's on Tap in California?

Attend the Next TEAM Event to Find Out! 

Babcock Labs will hold its next TEAM Event on Thursday, September 20th. To register, click here.

Attendees will hear from experts at the State’s Division of Drinking Water: Christine Sotelo (Chief, CA ELAP) and Sean McCarthy (Section Chief, South Coast Section).

Ms. Sotelo will provide an update on CA ELAP’s transformation initiatives, in addition to efforts to adopt laboratory standards into the California Code of Regulations. Mr. McCarthy will discuss the Division’s regulatory priorities for 2018, including the new notification levels for PFOA and PFOS, the 1,2,3-TCP MCL, and the latest developments on Lead and Copper, such as lead sampling in schools.

We look forward to seeing you on September 20th for this informative event! Register now.

In Case You Missed It:

Reminder: Babcock Labs
will be closed on Monday, September 3rd in
observance of Labor Day 

Please note that Babcock Labs strictly adheres to sample acceptance criteria, pursuant to Standard Methods and regulatory requirements.
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