North Carolina Tests for Lead in School Drinking Water The
public schools in Durham, N.C., have completed testing the
presence of abnormal levels of lead in its drinking water.
According to the Herald Sun, of the 318 water fountains tested
at 27 different schools, 14 had elevated levels of lead. The
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requires government action
to take place when lead is found in amounts greater than 15
parts per billion. One of the samples taken at Northern High
School showed lead to be at 1,770 parts per billion, which is
118 times greater than the safety limit. Another water sample
taken at Carrington Middle School came up at 383 parts per
billion. In April, a child was found to have lead poisoning
after drinking from a faucet in South Durham. Since that
incident, the water supply in Durham has been put into question,
and therefore the public schools were tested. The fountains that
showed higher than the allowed levels of lead were removed. The
testing was conducted by the Durham Health D