In Baltimore, turning off the water fountains
Everyone I talked to for my story today about the city school system's decision to ditch its water fountains and provide univeral bottled water agreed it was the right move, both from a financial and a health perspective. But I can't help but wonder, if the city school system has been trying to get the lead out of its water since the early 1990s, how much money has been wasted? How much could have been saved if the schools just got bottled water to begin with 15 years ago? We'll probably never know the answer.
UPDATE: Here are two blog entries by city educators with different views of the water situation:
http://epiphanyinbaltimore.blogspot.com/2007/11/bottled-water.html
http://baltimorediary.typepad.com/baltimore_diary/2007/11/lead-in-the-wat.html
Epiphany in Baltimore's points about the problems with water coolers in his school (not changed often enough, not enough cups) are ones the school system will have to address.
Baltimoresun.com's 
Comments
I think water is an important thing in everyone's most of all a child. By bringing bottled water to the schools we know the child is getting water that has been tested and treated for impurities on a daily basis. It may also promote a greater water drinking experience for our children. Dale Anderson, of Baltimore City.
Posted by: Dale Anderson | November 8, 2007 7:27 AM
and how many kids drank lead-filled water?
It's a shame that this is a conversation we're having in 2007.
Posted by: Steph | November 8, 2007 8:40 AM
I have to admit that when I first moved here, I was surprised by the number of students who are still affected by this situation. I remember being a small child in New York and seeing all kinds of things on TV about not eating paint chips, etc. At this point, testing kids for lead isn't a requirement there anymore the way it is here. Lead poisoning is a genuine rarity in New York. We're looking at fewer than 800 kids in 2005--out of close to 200,000 children under age 4 who were tested, and out of over a million children overall.
However, once I realized (based on my experience with Cecil Elementary) that the problem was more of a city services-based thing than it is from eating paint (or sucking on Chinese toys), the pieces fell into place for me.
Posted by: Claude | November 8, 2007 11:30 AM