Unsafe levels of lead found in water at Mich., NJ school districts

Newark Public Schools has found that more than half of its schools have high lead levels in the water, The Atlantic reports.

Since testing positive for unsafe lead levels in early March, officials at the district’s 67 schools have responded by shutting off water supplies—including water fountains and kitchen faucets—in some schools and transitioning to bottled water. District officials also made parents aware of the situation, and affected schools are offering blood tests to their students, according to the website.

Newark’s lead problems come as Detroit Public Schools announced earlier this week they also found elevated levels of lead or copper in 17 of their schools, in addition to two others previously announced, according to The Detroit Free Press.

DPS officials say they’ve provided students with bottled water and are working to fix the problem by shutting off water supplies, informing the city’s health department and retesting water in the affected schools. 

“The District is currently working on detailed mitigation plans for each of the affected schools and will share those with the Detroit Health Department to ensure all proper actions are taken moving forward,” DPS spokeswoman Michelle Zdrodowski said in an email.

Check out the Newark Public Schools’ full story via The Atlantic.