News Contamination Water Issues
Halton Catholic schools’ drinking water has acceptable lead levels and is safe to drink, test results show

Burlington, Ont. – It’s safe to drink the water at Catholic schools in the Burlington, Oakville, Milton and Halton Hills districts.

There were earlier concerns about elevated lead levels in the schools’ drinking water, but recent testing has suggested lead content falls within acceptable levels. Results have shown no elevations in lead content for a second consecutive year. Testing was done after some school boards found high levels of lead in recent years in their schools’ drinking water.

Lead found in drinking water is usually the result of plumbing corrosion among lead components.

Samples taken between May and October were tested at an independent laboratory. Lead content must be below 10 micrograms per litre to be deemed acceptable, according to the Ontario Safe Water Act.

Because results were positive, however, water must be flushed once a week to clear the system. Some other school districts require daily flushing. The comparatively limited flushing also results in lesser consumption.