Third — If funds are available, the Centers for
Disease Control may make grants available to
states and local governments for initiating
and expanding community programs de-
signed to;

:
   Screen infants and children for elevated
   blood levels.
    Assure referral for treatment and environ-
    mental intervention of infants and chil-
    dren with elevated blood levels.
    Provide education about childhood lead
    poisoning.
    Provide education about childhood lead
    poisoning.
FOR MORE INFORMATION

Publications and Documents
Lead Contamination Control Act < P.L.I
572) and supporting documents, available
through: House Document Room, House of
Representatives, Washington, DC 20515, (202)
225-3456.

Lead In School's Drinking Water (GPO-055-000-
00281-9), available for $3.25.  Send check or
money order to: Superintendent of Docu-
ments, U.S. Government Printing Office,
Washington, DC 20402, (202) 783-3238.

You and Your Drinking Water and Laid and
Your Drinking Water. Available from: U.S. En-
vironmental Protection Agency, Public
Information Center, 401 Street, SW, Washing-
ton, DC 20460.
   these and other materials and information
about safe dnnkmg water or lead sn drinking
water you can write to:

Office of Drinking Water (WH-550) U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M
Street, SW, Washington, DC 20460.

U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission,
Division of Corrective Actions, Washington,
DC 20207.

Centers for Disease Control, Center for Envi-
ronmental Health and Injury Control, Division
of Environmental Hazards and Health Effects,
Atlanta, GA 30333.


State and Local Information Requests
Information about state and local lead-in-
drinking-water programs may be available
from designated "lead contacts" at state Health
or Environmental agencies. Departments of
Education, or Water Supply Agencies. Local
information may be available from county/city
Boards of Education, Environmental Agencies
and Health Departments. Local lead-screening
programs and family doctors or pediatricians
can also be information sources.


Hotline
EPA's Safe Drinking Water Hotline:
  (800) 426-4791 or (202) 382-5533
                                                                                                                                                  Jnited
                                                                                                                                                  Environmental Protection
                                                                                                                                                  Agency
                                                                                                                             July 191
                                                                                                                                                 Office of Water
;oEPA Lead
              Contamination
              Control Act
              (LCCA)
                                                                                                                                       <_ - -
                                                                                                                                       r- rr
                                                                                                                                             ,f Printed on Recycled Pjpt-

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The New Law
The Lead Contamination Control Act (LCCA)
of 1988 requires:
•  The identification of water coolers that are
    not lead-free.
•  The repair or removal of water coolers
    with lead-lined tanks.
•  A ban on the manufacture and sale of
    water coolers that are not lead free.
»•  The identification and resolution of lead
    problems in schools' drinking water.
•  The authorization of additional funds for
    lead screening programs for children.

The Act was signed by President Reagan on
October 31, 1988.
Who Is Affected
:
'
The law's programs and provisions will affect:
•  Secondary and primary schools, kinder-
   gartens and day care centers.
•  Water cooler manufacturers and distribu-
   tors.
   Federal, state, and local agencies.
Why It Was Enacted	

Most people understand that the consumption
of lead can be very dangerous and that expo-
sure to lead can cause a number of harmful
health effects. These include serious damage to
the brain and central nervous system, kidneys,
and liver. Lead is present in many places — in
air, food, dust, dirt, and in drinking water.
Harmful levels of lead can enter our bodies
from any of these sources.
                                                  Children are particularly sensitive to lead
                                                  contamination. Their bodies are developing
                                                  and, as a result, they absorb and  retain more
                                                  lead than adults. Even at very low levels of
                                                  lead exposure, children can experience re-
                                                  duced I.Q. levels, impaired learning and
                                                  language skills, loss of hearing, and reduced
                                                  attention spans and poor classroom perform-
                                                  ance. At higher levels, lead can damage their
                                                  brains and central nervous systems, interfering
                                                  with both learning and physical growth.

                                                  Women are also at risk. In women, lead  can
                                                  cause fertility problems and miscarriages. In
                                                  pregnant women, lead can cause impaired
                                                  development of the fetus, premature births,
                                                  and reduced birth weights.
                                                  Men are at risk of increased blood pressure
                                                  from exposure to lead.
The lead problem must be solved and the
threat it imposes must be eliminated. One
way to begin is to remedy one of the most
common, yet controllable sources of lead
contamination — that found in drinking water
due to the corrosion of interior plumbing (in-
cluding water coolers) —especially in schools
and dav care centers.
                                                  Federal Guidance

                                                  The Lead Contamination Control Act directs
                                                  EPA to publish guidance to assist schools,
                                                  local education agencies, and day care centers
                                                  in discovering the levels of contamination in
                                                  drinking-water coolers and taking actions to
                                                  reduce contamination. The first, most impor-
                                                  tant step is to identity such sources ot lead
                                                   contamination in drinking water as water
                                                   coolers, interior plumbing, bathroom faucets,
                                                   and kitchen facilities. If the specific source is
                                                   determined, then the problem can be solved.

                                                   To help do this, EPA published a guidance
                                                   document entitled, Lead in School Drinking
                                                   Water. The guidance explains the problem of
                                                   lead contamination and the harmful effects
                                                   related to the consumption of lead in drinking
                                                   water. It also explains how to identify possible
                                                   sources of lead and how to conduct a thor-
                                                   ough, step-by-step sampling protocol in a
                                                   school (or other public building).

                                                   Schools and people responsible for other
                                                   buildings should obtain the guidance docu-
                                                   ment and begin the process of identification,
                                                   sampling and  remediation.  Lead in School
                                                   Drinking Water has been distributed to all the
                                                   states and is also available to the general
                                                   public through the U.S. Government Printing
                                                   Office (see below for details).
Water Coolers

Other sections of the Act focus on the identifi-
cation of water coolers that may contribute
lead to dnnking water. As required by the
law, EPA has published a list, identifying the
brands and models of water coolers that are
not lead free. The list appeared in the Federal
Register on Apnl 10,1989 (54 FR 14320). This
list may help schools and other building
owners identify a priority list of outlets for
testing, but it does not account for all possible
sources of lead in schools' drinking water.
EPA encourages owners of drinking water
coolers to sample the water they produce if
they believe there  may be a lead problem.

The LCCA directs the Consumer Products
Safety Commission (CPSC) to issue an order
requiring manufacturers and importers ot
                                                    coolers with lead-lined tanks to either repair
                                                    the coolers, replace the coolers, or recall the
                                                    coolers and provide a refund to the owners.
                                                    The law also prohibits the future manufacture
                                                    and sale in interstate commerce of any water
                                                    cooler that is not lead-free.
State Agencies
^^^^^^^H^^V^^^^M^V^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^H

The LCCA also indicates three areas involving
state agencies:

First — To complement the EPA guidance
document and testing protocol, states are
supposed to provide a list of qualified
laboratories so that school authorities and the
general public can test their tap water for lead.
These should be laboratories that are certified
by the States only after proven to provide
reliable and accurate testing services.

Second — States may use the guidance
documents to assist local school systems and
education agencies. Although EPA does not
require testing, local education agencies are
encouraged to:

•  Identify water coolers that are not lead-
    free.
•  Test school water outlets (including water
    coolers) for lead.
•  Identify and remedy other sources of lead
    contamination in the school (e.g. interior
    plumbing, bathnxnn faucets, and kitchen
    facilities).
•  Repair water coolers by taking actions to
    ensure that they are lead-free; perma-
    nently remove and replace them with
    coolers that are lead-free; or render the
    coolers inoperable, unless they are tested
    and found (within the limits of testing
    accuracy) not to contribute lead to drink-
    ing water.

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