Lead levels: 43 % of drinking water fountains and taps in Surrey schools need flushing

The Surrey school board says it is taking action to remedy unsafe lead levels found in drinking water at some of its schools.

In the spring of 2016, the Ministry of Education asked the board to review the water quality in all of schools built before 1989, when B.C. plumbing standards were updated to limit the use of lead solder.

Yesterday, the board sent a letter to parents detailing the findings.

According to the letter, 621 taps, fountains and other water sources were tested. Of those, 325 about half provided "good quality water without any flushing."

But 269 sources about 43 per cent provided good quality water after flushing that is, letting the water run for at least two minutes and 27 sources about four per cent still had unsafe levels of lead after two minutes of flushing.

The school board says those taps and fountains won't be available for use until they can be replaced or upgraded.

Doug Strachan, spokesperson for Surrey Schools, said a flushing protocol has been put in place to ensure the availability of safe water.

"It's quite understandable that there would be concern about lead levels in water and I think the district has put in a lot of resources in a relatively short time frame," Strachan said.

According to the letter sent to parents, the testing is the first part of a three-phase plan. The second phase is to replace faucets and install filters at sources identified as unsafe, and the third phase will be another review and the creation of a long-term monitoring strategy.

With files from Farrah Merali.