Sampling at Montana’s schools is identifying lead in water–right down to each faucet, sink, or drinking fountain.

Children absorb lead at higher rates than the average adult and exposure may lead to brain, red blood cell, or kidney damage, and result in reduced IQ, hearing impairment, recued attention span, and poor classroom performance, according to DEQ information. Lead enters drinking water mostly due to corrosion of water distribution systems and facility plumbing.

A 2020 administrative rule passed by the Department of Health and Human Services requires accredited schools to test for lead in water. The Department of Environmental Quality is providing technical support with the sampling and remediation.

So far, about half of Montana’s 560 accredited schools have submitted samples. Most fixtures sampled below the state’s action level (for lead in water), however about 9 percent of fixtures sampled must be shut off due to high levels of lead. Another 20 percent must be fixed. The least likely fixture to exceed lead action levels? Bottle fill stations, according to department data.

The DEQ has grant funding to pay for lab analysis. More information–including test results for an individual school–is available at deq.mt.gov/lead.