BELLINGHAM, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – Newly released data has put a Bellingham school at the top of an unexpected list.
The state Department of Health (DOH) says that two sinks at Silver Beach Elementary School were found to have some of the highest concentrations of lead-contaminated water in the entire state.
That testing was completed last June, and by August, at least one of the taps was completely removed.
Additional data showed lead levels in the water from the other sink returned to safe limits.
But Bellingham Public Schools spokesperson Dana Smith says that additional testing by contractors couldn’t replicate the unusually high numbers obtained by the DOH.
A 2021 state law required a majority of water utilities in public schools to test for safe levels of lead.
The sinks in the two Silver Beach classrooms found lead levels over 800 times higher than is safe to consume during the 2024 tests.
In comparison, the next closest offending sink in Whatcom County had 75 times the legal limit of lead detected in the water.
Most other taps and water fountains that were examined at schools in our area reported lead levels at or below the legal threshold.
