Canaan
Some of the lead test results from local water systems, which were included in a nationwide database built by the Associated Press, exceeded the existing limit for lead in water of 15 ppb.
A number of the above-limit samples were taken in the houses of customers in the town of Canaan, which owns a system that serves about 600 people with water drawn from Canaan Street Lake and a bedrock well.
The level of lead in samples taken from the Canaan system peaked at 27 ppb in 2014, according to the AP analysis.
A 2015 Consumer Confidence Report from the Canaan Water Department said that 10 of the 40 samples taken in 2014 exceeded the EPA action level of 15 parts per billion.
The “likely sources” of the elevated lead levels included corrosion of household pipes and erosion of natural deposits, the report said. Drinking water with this much lead could delay physical or mental development of children and slightly decrease their attention spans and learning abilities, while adults could develop kidney problems or high blood pressure, the report said.
The lead issue seemed to originate in the “service” water lines that connect houses to the water mains, said John Coffey, the operator of the water system. Some of those connections date back to 1895, which is the year of construction for the house where the elevated lead samples were taken, he said.
The town has identified six to eight older houses that will receive on-site visits to examine the “service” lines and the plumbing. “We’re going to try to be proactive,” Coffey said.
While lead-based paint used in older homes is the most pervasive and dangerous source of poisoning, according to experts, humans can also be exposed to lead through “contaminated soil, household dust, drinking water pumped through leaded pipes, lead crystal, lead-glazed pottery, airplane fuel, some toys, and some inexpensive metal jewelry,” according to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, which warns: “No amount of lead is safe.”
To prevent lead exposure, water systems that serve at least 25 people for at least six months a year are required to conduct periodic tests. Testing intervals range from six months to three years, and vary with the number of people served and past sampling results, according to Ben Montross of the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation.
Water samples from three active Vermont systems in the Upper Valley contained lead above the existing 15 parts per billion limit, according to the AP dataset.
The Reading Elementary School, where 47 people drink the water, had a peak test result of 54 parts per billion, or more than three times the existing standard. Water at the school topped the proposed, tighter standard four times.
“It was nothing,” said Dennis Goodenough, who oversees maintenance at the school. “That was taken care of two months ago.”
The high test number came from a sample taken from an upstairs bathroom sink, he said. The faucet from that sink and five other faucets were later replaced, and subsequent test results were normal, he said.
Two water samples taken in September from Woodstock Aqueduct Co.’s system — serving an estimated 1,600 users — exceeded the proposed limit, according to Eric Wegner, the system’s general manager. The peak reading in the Woodstock system, which was 19 parts per billion, exceeded the existing limit.
Periodic testing of the Woodstock and other public water systems is done by having customers take samples from their taps first thing in the morning, Wegner said. The samples are sent to a laboratory for analysis.
It was clear that the lead in the above-limit samples came from the pipes or solder in customers’ homes, Wegner said: “A lot of people have really old plumbing.”
A subsequent round of tests ordered by the state found no measurable lead in 19 samples and a level well below the limit in a 20th, Wegner said.
The Bradford, Vt., Village Water System, which provides water to 1,500 people, exceeded the proposed limit three times, with a peak reading of 17 parts per billion. That reading also topped the current limit. Jon Thornton, the system operator, said the tests that showed excessive lead levels occurred in the fall and that he was notified by the state during the spring.
None of the 20 samples taken in a subsequent round of tests showed more than 7 ppb. Another round of tests will be done later this year, he said.
No lead was found in tests of the system’s source water, so presumably the lead came from lead in fixtures or elsewhere in customers’ houses, Thornton said: “Whatever it was is cleared out.”
Water from a well serving 110 people in the Vermont Castings Foundry in Bethel exceeded the proposed limit four times during the second half of 2015, but peaked at 14 ppb, just under the existing limit. Company officials could not be reached for comment Friday.
What is now classified as an “inactive” system that had served 78 people in the Bridgewater Village School exceeded the proposed standard four times during a three-year testing period that ended Dec. 31, 2014, and peaked at 15 parts per billion, which is the current standard.
The school closed last year, and Bridgewater students now attend the Prosper Valley School in Pomfret.
A total of 13 Vermont and 14 New Hampshire water systems that showed lead above the proposed level serve or served schools or day care facilities.
Rick Jurgens can be reached at rjurgens@vnews.com.