Dog discovers tainted water in San Diego school

A dog’s reluctance to drink from a bowl in a San Diego classroom led to the discovery of lead in the school’s water system, and testing of all pipes in the San Diego Unified School District will begin soon.

According to a notice sent Friday to parents and staff members Emerson-Bandini Elementary and the San Diego Co-Operative Charter School 2, which share a single campus, a teacher at the charter school noticed her therapy dog would not drink from a bowl filled with water from the classroom sink on Jan. 26.

The teacher then saw a sheen on the water, which led to the district sampling numerous water outlets on the campus. After detecting contaminates that exceeded the state’s allowable level, the district contacted its water provider, the City of San Diego, which has agreed to test all district properties, including its 187 campuses, at no cost.

San Diego Unified public information officer Andrew Sharp said that at the time of the lead discovery, the district already was in discussions with the City of San Diego to test all water in its properties as part of a new program offered by the state.

San Diego Unified Chief Operations Officer Drew Rowlands announced Thursday that the tests will begin April 4 and will be complete before the semester’s end in June.

Students at the two schools are receiving bottled drinking water until the issue is resolved, said district public information officer Andrew Sharp.

The notice sent Friday to Emerson-Bandini staff and parents also stated that a consultant involved in the testing confirmed that the water is safe for hand-washing. There should be no concerns about food, according to the notice, because all meals are prepared off campus.

The water testing in San Diego Unified will be conducted for free by the city as part of an offer the state has made to all school districts.

“We are grateful to the City of San Diego for its partnership and cooperation on this vast undertaking,” Rowlands said in Thursday’s statement. “The comprehensive effort will take multiple months to complete due to the relevant regulatory requirements.”

Testing will be done in early morning hours before the start of school, and up to five samples will be taken at each site. Samples will be taken at drinking fountains, cafeterias and food preparation areas.

“The safety and health of students and staff across San Diego Unified is the highest priority for the district,” Rowland said.

Tests will involve a geographic approach, beginning at the southeast corner of the district where some of the oldest district schools are located. Five schools will be tested daily, and city staff will work their way north and west until all the testing is done.

If results indicate there is lead above allowable levels, district staff will determine the source of contamination and take appropriate action on a case-by-case basis, Rowlands said. Those steps could include turning off water, replacing fixtures and making plumbing repairs.

The public can keep track of the testing online by visiting www.sandiegounified.org/drinking-water-sampling-1.

Water for all San Diego Unified School District sites is provided by the City of San Diego Public Utilities Department. The city, as a municipal water provider, is required to comply with state and federal regulations and, as such, it conducts numerous water quality tests and produces related reports.

As a result of a permit action by the State Water Resources Control Board Division of Drinking Water last December, all community water providers, including the City of San Diego, are required if requested to test for lead in drinking water at K-12 schools.

Last month, elevated levels of lead were detected in three schools in the San Ysidro School District, and lead was discovered in a drinking fountain at San Marcos Middle School this month.

gary.warth@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @GaryWarthUT

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