All water sources at William McDonald Middle School are off limits until further notice after a sweeping NWT-wide test of school water fountains detected unsafe levels of lead in the water of a fountain.
An advisory was released Tuesday afternoon by Yellowknife Education District No. 1 superintendent Shirley Zouboules which stated that students and staff will be provided bottled water until the school's internal water is deemed safe to drink.
"Health CanadaSA国际影视传媒檚 guideline value for the maximum acceptable concentration of lead in drinking water is 0.005 milligrams per litre (mg/L)," she wrote. "Treated water from the City of Yellowknife is safe to drink. The city routinely tests for lead in the drinking water supply and is below the guideline value.
"A sample was taken from the water fountain by the elevator on the first floor of William McDonald Middle School. The sample result shows that lead was detected at 0.00903 (mg/L), which is higher than Health CanadaSA国际影视传媒檚 guideline value. We are working to identify potential sources of exposure and are communicating actions that can be taken to both reduce lead and protect children and staff.
"Please note that the water at Ecole William McDonald Middle School is safe for hand washing, cleaning, and instructional activities."
Lead occurs naturally and in concentrations less than 0.005 mg/L is considered a small enough amount to not pose a serious threat. However, large volumes of lead over a long time can result in reduced cognition, increased blood pressure and renal dysfunction in adults, as well as adverse neurodevelopmental and behavioural effects in children.
Noting the water sample in question was not conclusive, Zouboules said further testing would be needed to assess the safety of the water and rule out a sampling error.
"Samples of all water fountains and cold water taps where water is used for drinking or food preparation will be sampled in the coming weeks," she said. "Testing dates, results, and further information will be communicated to school staff, students, parents and families once these have been reported by the lab.
"In the interim, providing alternative sources of drinking and cooking water is a precautionary approach."
Zouboules stated anyone who had questions or concerns should reach out to the Department of Education, Culture and Employment at educationoperations@gov.nt.ca for more information.
