Lead in schools’ water

Kids need safe drinking water — especially at school where they go to learn and play each day. Yet as our map shows, lead has been detected in the water at schools and preschools across the country.

Lead is highly toxic for children. Schools should immediately install filters at all drinking water taps, and replace or disconnect lead-bearing fountains, pipes and plumbing where feasible.

Lead is harmful to kids

Lead is highly toxic for children – disrupting how they learn, grow and behave. According to the EPA,”[i]n children, low levels of [lead] exposure have been linked to damage to the central and peripheral nervous system, learning disabilities, shorter stature, impaired hearing, and impaired formation and function of blood cells.”  There is no safe level of lead, especially for children.

Lead contamination of schools’ water is widespread

As more and more schools test their water, they are finding lead. The map above presents lead testing data from schools and child care centers that our research partners uncovered as of March 2025. 

Lead contamination of schools’ water is likely even more pervasive indicated by our map of available data, for the following reasons:

• Lead sampling is so variable that a fountain or faucet can be “highly hazardous” even if several tests fail to detect lead. 
• Some states or school districts do not publish data showing lower levels of lead in water (e.g., concentrations below 5 parts per billion), which are much more common.  There is no safe level of lead for children.
• Some schools only take “first draw” samples, so they are not testing water sitting in contact with lead pipes or plumbing away from the tap.  
• Most schools have at least some lead in their plumbing, pipes or fixtures. 

Except where noted, our map does not reflect whether or how effectively schools have sought to prevent or remediate lead contamination.  We are simply displaying available testing data to show that, absent effective action, lead contamination of schools’ water is likely to occur.

How to get the lead out?

Given the pervasive presence of lead in plumbing and fixtures, schools and child care centers should take preventive action at every tap used for drinking, cooking or beverage preparation.  Key steps include replacing lead-bearing fountains with lead-filtering water stations and installing filters certified to remove lead on other taps as well.  Where feasible, lead pipes and plumbing should also be replaced.

We are working with local, state, and federal officials to get the lead out of schools’ drinking water.  To learn more about current policies, see our Get the Lead Out report.

Want to ensure safe drinking water at your child’s school?

Take action with our free Get the Lead Out toolkit.  

Sources

AK: Environmental Protection Agency, news release, November 23, 2021, accessed online on 2/27/22 at [LINK]

AR: Joseph Flaherty, “State to check schools’ water for lead levels,” Arkansas Democrat Gazette, February 24, 2020, accessed online on 2/27/22 at [LINK]

AL: Alabama Department of Environmental Management, “2017-2019 ADEM Lead Testing in Public Schools Program,” accessed online on 2/27/22 at [LINK]; Alabama Department of Environmental Management, Lead Testing in Schools Results, accessed online on 2/27/22 at [LINK]

AZ: Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, Arizona’s Public School Drinking Water Lead Screening Program, December 2017, accessed at [LINK] See Initial Screening chart on page 7. Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, Public School Lead Screening Test Data, last revised December 8, 2017 [LINK]

CA: CALPIRG, Get the Lead Out Statewide Map, revised March 3, 2020, accessed at [LINK] California Water Boards, “Lead Sampling of Drinking Water in California Schools,” California Water Boards, last modified December 31, 2020; and testing results obtained by CALPIRG from the California State Water Board, accessed at [LINK]; California Natural Resources Agency, “Drinking Water – Results of Lead Sampling of Drinking Water in California Schools,” revised February 28, 2022, accessed at [LINK]

CO: CoPIRG Foundation, Get the Lead Out of Drinking Water in Colorado Schools (June 2024), accessed at [LINK]; and Colorado Dept of Public Health & Environment, Test and Fix Water for Kids Lead Test Results, accessed on February 20, 2025 at [LINK]

CT: Ana Radelat, “Most CT schools don’t test water for lead, but that could change,” The CT Mirror, April 1, 2016, accessed at [LINK]; AJ Walker, “Most Connecticut Schools Are Not Required to Test Water for Lead,” NBC Connecticut, August 17, 2016, accessed at [LINK]

DE: Jordan Howell, Delaware public school lead crisis getting worse by the day, Delaware Call, Feb. 24, 2023 [LINK]; and Delaware Lead in Drinking Water Sampling Dashboard [LINK]

FL: Florida Dept. of Environmental Protection, Voluntary Lead Testing Program for Schools and Child Care Facilities, accessed on March 21, 2025 at [LINK]

GA: Clean Water for Georgia Kids Program Summary, accessed on February 17, 2025 at [LINK]

HI: State of Hawaii Department of Health, WIIN-Lead Testing Results, accessed at [LINK] State of Hawaii Department of Health, Lead in drinking water at selected Hawaii public schools and child care facilities linked to faucet fixtures no longer being used while monitoring continues, July 22, 2021, accessed at [LINK]

ID: James Dawson, “​​High Lead Levels Found In Water At More Than 20 Boise Schools – Here’s Where They Are,” Boise State Public Radio News, November 29, 2018, accessed at [LINK] and Boise School District Lead Information Center page, accessed on 3/9/22 at [LINK]

IL: IDPH, Improving Water Quality at Schools, accessed Feb 17, 2025 at [LINK];  IllinoisPIRG Education Fund, Analysis finds pervasive lead contamination in schools (September 2018) [LINK]

IN: Indiana Finance Authority, Indiana Lead Sampling Program for Public Schools, accessed at [LINK]; and WRTV, Indiana schools grapple with how to keep lead out of drinking water, Nov. 15, 2023, accessed at [LINK]

IA: Lead in Drinking Water Test Report obtained from Des Moines Public Schools in January 2022. See also DMPS “Drinking Water Lead Testing Program,” accessed at [LINK]

KS: U.S. EPA, EPA Awards Kansas $472,000 to Test for Lead in School Drinking Water, April 8, 2020, accessed on 2/27/22 at [LINK]; Allison Kite, “Report: Residents in Missouri, Kansas get drinking water from lead pipes at high rates,” The Joplin Globe, July 17, 2021, accessed at [LINK]

KY: AJ Greenfield, “Kentucky to receive $576K to identify lead sources in schools’ drinking water,” WTVQ, February 27, 2020, accessed on 2/27/22 at [LINK]

LA: Louisiana Department of Health, “School Water Testing Pilot Program,” accessed at [LINK]

ME: Maine Division of Environmental and Community Health, “Testing for Lead in School Drinking Water”  [LINK].

MA: Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection Drinking Water Program, “Lead and Copper in School Drinking Water Sampling Results,” Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection [LINK]; and email correspondence from Yvette DiPeiza, MA DEP to Deirdre Cummings, MASSPIRG, Feb. 14, 2023.

MD: Maryland Department of the Environment, “Test Results for Public Schools Received and Verified as of February 7, 2022,” accessed on 2/27/22 at [LINK]

MI: Safe Water Engineering, Why Michigan’s Filter First Bills Matter (2023) accessed at [LINK]; Environment America, Michigan adopts strongest laws to get the lead out of schools’ water, Oct. 19, 2023, accessed at [LINK]

MN: MN Dept. of Health, Results and Metrics for Early Care and Education Settings, accessed on Feb. 17, 2025 at [LINK]

MS: Shea Stewart, “Partnering for Safer Mississippi Drinking Water,” University of Mississippi News, October 20, 2021 [LINK]; Mississippi State Extension, SipSafe Program [LINK]

MO: Missouri Dept. of Elementary and Secondary Education, MSSD Get the Lead Out Test Results, accessed on March 31, 2025 at [LINK]; Saint Louis Public Schools, “Water Testing: Individual School Test Results as of August 25, 2016,” accessed at [LINK]

MT: Environment Montana Research & Policy Center, “Get the Lead Out: Lead Contamination in Montana’s Schools” (2018) [LINK]; Montana Department of Environmental Quality, “Drinking Water: Lead in Schools,” accessed at [LINK] Montana Department of Environmental Quality, “School Lead Sampling Results,” accessed at [LINK]

NE: Ellis Wiltsey, “NDEE reports on lead levels in Nebraska schools & childcare centers,” KOLN, February 7, 2022 [LINK]; Nebraska Dept. of Health and Human Services, “Lead Data and Reports,” accessed on 2/8/22 at [LINK]

NV: Nevada DEP, Lead Testing Results, accessed on Feb. 21, 2025 at [LINK]

NH: Saskia Braden, “In First Statewide Tests for Lead in School Drinking Water, Not All Schools Measure Up,” Conservation Law Foundation, September 12, 2019, accessed at [LINK]; New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services, “Lead in Drinking Water at NH Schools and Child Care Centers” [LINK]

NJ: Environment America Research & Policy Center, “Lead found in water at half of schools taps tested in Bergen County, New Jersey,” news release, July 17, 2017 [LINK]; Environment New Jersey Research & Policy Center, “New Study: Lead contamination exceedingly common in Atlantic County school drinking water,” news release, March 2, 2022, accessed at [LINK]; Dustin Racioppi and Stacey Barchenger, “High lead levels in NJ school water add to need for action, Murphy and lawmakers say,” Trenton Bureau, September 26, 2019, accessed at [LINK]

NM: Albuquerque Public Schools, “APS continues to remedy elevated lead levels in water,” November 19, 2019, accessed on 3/12/22 at [LINK]

NY: New York League of Conservation Voters Education Fund, “5 is the New 15: A Case for Reducing the Action Level for Lead in New York State’s Public School Drinking Water Program from 15 parts per billion (ppb) to 5 ppb” [LINK]; Nicole Greenfield, “At Least 82 Percent of New York Public Schools Have a Lead Problem,” Natural Resources Defense Council, November 15, 2018, accessed at [LINK]

NC: Clean Classrooms for Carolina Kids – School Program Summary, accessed on Feb. 17, 2025 at [LINK]; Child Care Facility Program Summary accessed at [LINK]

ND: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality Amendment Notification, November 21, 2019, accessed at [LINK]; North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality, “Lead in Schools,” accessed at [LINK]

OH: Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, “Early Adopters: State Approaches to Testing School Drinking Water for Lead – State Profile: Ohio” (2018) [LINK]

OK: Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality, “Oklahoma Drinking Water Lead Testing in Public Schools & Child Care Facilities,” see “Testing and Reporting” tab at bottom of page, accessed at [LINK]

OR: Environment America, “Survey of Testing Results from 100 School Districts.”, [LINK]; Oregon Health Authority, “Drinking Water Test Results: Oregon Schools (2016)” accessed at [LINK]

PA: Women for a Healthy Environment, State Of Environmental Health In PA Schools, accessed February 17, 2025 at [LINK]; PennPIRG Education Fund, New Study: Lead Contamination Common in Philly School Drinking Water, February 16, 2022, accessed at [LINK]

RI: Rhode Island Dept. of Health, Lead in School and Daycare Facility Drinking Water, accessed on February 17, 2025 at [LINK]

SC: South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, Lead Testing in Schools and Child Care Programs, accessed at [LINK]; South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, WIIN Grant Sampla Results (12/18/2021), accessed at [LINK]; South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, “DHEC Offers Free Testing for Lead in Drinking Water at Schools, Child Care Centers through Federal Grant,” news release, October 21, 2021, accessed at [LINK]

SD: South Dakota Department of Agriculture & Natural Resources, Lead in Schools, accessed at [LINK]

TN: Statewide: Marta Aldrich, “Nearly 100 Tennessee schools found high lead levels in their water. Is your school on the list?” Chalkbeat Tennessee, August 29, 2019, accessed at [LINK] For metro Nashville: Phil Williams, “Tests Show Lead in Metro Schools Drinking Water,” News Channel 5, October 4, 2017 accessed at [LINK] and Phil Williams, “Flint Expert: MNPS Lead Tests Should Be ‘Thrown Right Into The Garbage’,” News Channel 5, May 23, 2018, accessed at [LINK]; School by school data: “MNPS Lead Raw Data,” accessed at [LINK].

TX: Environment Texas Research & Policy Center, New analysis: 78 percent of tested schools, daycares have found lead in drinking water, (October 2024) [LINK]

UT: Utah Department of Environmental Quality, Utah’s Lead-Free Learning Initiative, revised February 3, 2022, accessible at [LINK]; Emma Penrod, “Early testing reveals more than 200 Utah schools have lead in their drinking water — some at potentially dangerous levels,” The Salt Lake Tribune, August 28, 2017, accessible at [LINK]; Ginna Roe, “Lead found in water at 90% of Utah schools sampled, now DEQ wants to test it all,” KUTV, January 21, 2020, accessible at [LINK]

VT: State of Vermont General Assembly, “An act relating to testing and remediation of lead in the drinking water of schools and child care facilities,” 2019, draft language accessible at [LINK]; Vermont Official State Website, Lead in School and Child Care Drinking Water Results, with Summary accessible at [LINK] and specific school results at [LINK]; Vermont Official State Website, Lead in School Drinking Water Pilot, accessible at [LINK].

VA: Virginia State Law Portal, § 22.1-135.1. Potable water; lead testing, accessible at [LINK]

WA: Environment Washington, “Lead in the Water: Statewide Data Reveals Elevated Levels of Lead in School Drinking Water in Washington” (2019) [LINK]; Washington State Department of Health, Lead Test Results from Drinking Water in Schools, accessible at [LINK]; Legislature of the State of Washington, “An Act: Relating to taking action to address lead in school drinking water” [LINK]

Washington, DC: Sarah Anne Hughes, “D.C. Tested Public Schools’ Water for Lead. More Than 60 Had High Levels,” Washington City Paper, June 27, 2016, accessible at [LINK]; DC Public Charter School Board, Annual Water Testing for Lead, August 31, 2021, accessible at [LINK]; DC Department of General Services, Water Sampling Results for DC Public Schools, accessible at [LINK]

WV: U.S. EPA, “EPA Awards West Virginia Dept of Health and Human Resources $262,000  to test for lead in school drinking water,” April 1, 2020, accessed at [LINK]

WI: Milwaukee Public Schools, “Milwaukee Public Schools releases results of water quality testing,” December 16, 2016, accessed at [LINK]; Rock County: Wisconsin Environmental Public Health Tracking Program, “Evaluating the Risk of Lead in School Drinking Water,” accessed at [LINK] and Madison Public Schools, “Lead Water Testing,” accessed on 3/10/22 at [LINK]; and and Environment America Research & Policy Center, Milwaukee joins the honor roll for safer drinking water at school (2024) [LINK]

WY: Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, “Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act (WIIN Act), Section 2107 – Lead Testing in School and Child Care Facility Program,” 2019, accessed at [LINK]