The Oregon Trail School District (OTSD) announced seven fountains out of 14
and two faucets in food prep sinks out of two in Welches Middle School
contained slightly elevated levels of lead, ranging from .0206 to .030
milligrams per liter (mg/L) (the Environmental Protection Agency’s limit is
.020), following testing in August. The district shut down the receptacles,
notified parents via email on Wednesday, Aug. 10 and replaced the
equipment.

However, further test results the district received on Friday, Aug. 26 revealed
the continued presence of elevated lead levels.

“They came back with still a level of lead in the water that is not acceptable,”
said Julia Monteith, OTSD Director of Communications.

In addition, 23 classroom sinks out of 24 tested revealed elevated levels of
lead in the water, ranging from .0204 to .199 mg/L. Test results for the
Welches Elementary School classroom sinks were pending.

Monteith noted five of the seven fountains with elevated lead levels are in
rooms that are not used by students (but are used for storage), while the
remaining two fountains were “sometimes” in use. She added that the district
will have to hire a contractor to investigate the source of the lead, and noted
that the school’s water, supplied by the Salmon River Water Company, has a
low pH balance and the acidity level could cause corrosion.

Lon Goff, Water Distribution Operator at Salmon River Water Company, noted
the company is in compliance with the state for both lead and copper. The
company is tested every three years and the last test conducted by the
Oregon Health Authority (OHA), as detailed on the agency’s website, was Aug.
18, 2015.

The Salmon Valley Water Company is designated as an “Outstanding
Performer” by the OHA, which is earned through an on-site review of a system
for the purpose of evaluating its capability of providing safe water to the
public.

The school still has seven fountains without elevated lead levels and Monteith
noted an alternative water source, likely bottled water, would be brought in.
She added a neutralizing system may be needed to combat the problem, while
noting the problem appears in certain areas of the school while others are
unaffected.

“That’s one of the things we need to look into as we continue to test the water
and try to determine if there are certain areas that are higher in lead (or) if is
it the whole system,” Monteith said.

“We expect to have all the results back before school starts,” Monteith said,
adding that all the receptacles will not be functional until the district is sure
they are safe.

The district tested fountains and faucets at all 12 of its facilities in August,
with preliminary results showing four fountains out of ten and two faucets out
of five at Sandy Grade School, one fountain out of 16 at Kelso Elementary
School, 12 fountains out of 15 at Cedar Ridge Middle School, two faucets out
of four at Kelso Elementary School, one faucet out of one at the Community
Connections (across from the Pioneer campus) and one faucet out of seven at
Naas Elementary School higher than the EPA limit. The district was expected
to notify all parents on Monday, Aug. 29.

Monteith, who noted lead tests are not mandated, confirmed that all fountains
and faucets had been replaced and the district was awaiting results from
testing the new ones. Results were expected in late August or early
September, but if results had not been received prior to the return of
students, fountains and faucets that had not passed would not be in use.
Principal Kendra Payne noted she had not heard much feedback from the
community after the email notification.

“We are taking it really seriously,” Payne said.

Kurt McKnight, OTSD school board member for Zone 3 (Welches), noted that
he hasn’t heard much from community members since he was appointed to
the board in August. He added that he has been updated on the water issue
from Jim Seipel, the Facility Operations Director.

“I’m confident in hearing the update from Jim that the district is on top of it
and going to keep our kids safe,” McKnight said.