Introduction
In December of 2019, the Province of Nova Scotia committed to testing the water in all public schools across Nova Scotia after Health Canada revised its guidelines related to lead concentration levels in water. Health Canada also revised its guidelines related to copper concentration levels in water, and copper tests were also conducted. To ensure that parents were confident in the availability of safe drinking water, the government also put bottled water in every public school in Nova Scotia. This water will remain in place until appropriate mediation steps are taken.
In the meantime, Regional Centres of Education (RCEs) and Conseil scolaire acadien provincial (CSAP) have taken steps to remove access to any other water source until test results were received, and appropriate remediation steps can be taken.
Nova Scotia’s Results
Nova Scotia is committed to supplying clean drinkable water to our staff and students at our public schools.
Currently, all schools receive clean drinking water. This will not change.
The following pages include the water test results for all schools in this region. To find results for a particular school, press the Ctrl or Command key and F to reveal the search menu. Schools are also listed in alphabetical order for quick reference. Data captured includes school name, location of the water source in the school, the sample ID code for the water system/plumbing route tested, and the concentration of lead and copper.
Concentrations of lead and copper are presented in milligrams per litre (mg/L). Health Canada’s maximum acceptable concentration of lead in drinking water is 0.0050 mg/L; the maximum acceptable concentration of copper in drinking water is 2.0000 mg/L. The data also shows where the water “passed” the test, or if the water “exceed limits.” Water taps that exceed lead and/or copper limits will not be used for drinking water. These taps will be either replaced, disconnected, taped off, or restricted to hand washing only.
Next Steps
Nova Scotia continues to deal with restrictions based on COVID-19. This means there is no access to school water fountains. Bottled water continues to be available to staff and students. Moving forward, schools will continue to receive bottled water until appropriate remediation is completed.
Nova Scotia’s remediation plan for school water includes the following measures:
- Ongoing remediation of water taps, plumbing and/or pipes
- Restrict access to water taps that do not meet Health Canada guidelines
- Ongoing communication with students and staff about water safety efforts at their school
For more information about Health Canada’s guidelines related to lead and copper, go to the following sites:
Copper:
www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/publications/healthy-living/water-talk-copper.html#a3
Click here to see SSRCE’s Water Results (updated October,2021)