The safety of students, staff, and the community is our highest priority at the Saratoga Springs City School District. In 2016, the State Legislature passed a bill that required all school districts and boards of cooperative educational services to test all potable water outlets for lead contamination, to remediate contamination where found, and to notify parents of children and the public of test results. After the completion of testing in 2016, the district was required to conduct subsequent testing in five-year intervals starting in 2020. Due to the shutdown in the spring of 2020, the deadline for testing was extended to June 30, 2021.
In accordance with the law, the district will conduct water testing at all buildings with the assistance of a state-approved laboratory. In accordance with the law, if the lead level from a water outlet exceeds the state’s action level of 15 parts per billion, the district will take immediate action. The state’s regulations require that all such outlets be taken offline, or otherwise restricted, until a remediation plan is implemented, and further testing indicates that lead levels are below the action level. Due to Covid-19 safety protocols, drinking fountains were disabled prior to the start of the school year and will be tested before being put back in use again. In addition, hands-free bottle filling stations with carbon filters have been added to all buildings in the district and were included in the test results.
Upon receiving analytical results above the permissible level of 15 ppb, the district took immediate action. Kitchen sinks will not be used for food preparation. Other sinks were posted for hand washing use only as per guidance from the Department of Health. All identified sources of water will be remediated. While we know that this information may cause some concern, we are taking the necessary steps to address the situation and confirm the safety of water throughout the district. There is nothing that we take more seriously than the well-being of our students and staff.
Please view the links below to see the results for each school building: