EPA Awards Nebraska $522,000 to Test for Lead in School Drinking Water

Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 7 announced $522,000 in grant funding for the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services to help schools and child care programs in Nebraska test for lead within their drinking water systems.

“Knowing that no blood lead level is safe for our children, EPA is committed to continuing a collaborative approach with our state partners to address the threat of lead exposure and protect the health of our nation’s most vulnerable,” said EPA Region 7 Administrator Jim Gulliford. “With the support of these grants, we’re able to help more schools and child care programs test for lead in their drinking water to ensure children are not being exposed by the water they drink while in their care.”

Under EPA’s new Voluntary Lead Testing in Schools and Child Care grant program, EPA has awarded $43.7 million in grants toward funding the implementation of testing for lead in drinking water. This funding is a resource, which creates or expands programs to test for lead in drinking water at schools and child care programs in states and the District of Columbia.

EPA’s 3Ts (Training, Testing, and Taking Action) for Reducing Lead in Drinking Water in Schools will be used by the grantees to assist schools in implementing lead in drinking water testing, including identifying sources of lead such as fountains.

Testing results carried out using grant funds must be made publicly available.

More information is available here.