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Testing for Lead in K-12 School Drinking Water
IMPORTANT! This sampling program ended June 30th, 2023. Any school that failed to deliver finished samples to their lab by that date will be required cover the costs of analysis on their own.
The issue of lead in school drinking water has received a lot of attention in recent years. This is because school-age children are among those particularly vulnerable to health and developmental problems after exposure to high levels of lead.
With the passage of Maine Public Law 2019 Ch. 158 (An Act to Strengthen Testing for Lead in School Drinking Water), the Maine Legislature has mandated that all K-12 schools in Maine test their drinking water for the presence of lead. The Drinking Water Program has coordinated the sampling effort and has used a federal grant to pay for the water sample analysis. Sampling took place during the 2021-2022 school year and was extended into the fall of 2022. To see school sampling results or see if a school has sampled click on the link below:
Testing Results for All Schools (PDF) Updated 8/31/2023. Mapped Results can be found at the bottom of this page.
If your school has not completed sampling, the deadline set by the Drinking Water Program for free sample analysis, December 31, 2022, has passed. However, the law still requires all schools to sample all taps used for drinking or cooking for lead. DWP funding, and contracted laboratory analysis, is coming to an end very soon. The DWP has reached out, and will continue reaching out, to all schools that have not sampled. We urge those institutions to perform required testing before the funding and laboratory contract expire. If your school has not sampled, please click this link below to begin the process:
Click here to access training and information.
For more information about the program and the health effects of lead, please refer to the reference documents below. If you have specific questions about the program you can contact the Drinking Water Program at (207) 287-2070. You can also visit the Maine CDC’s Childhood Lead Poisoning website, or call the Division of Environmental and Community Health at (866) 292-3474.
About the Program
- A Guide to Lead Testing in Maine Schools (PDF)
- SP 40 LD 153 An Act To Strengthen Testing for Lead in School Drinking Water (PDF)
- Lead Testing In School Drinking Water Rule, 10-144 CMR Ch 234 (MS Word)
Health Information
- Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention (Maine CDC)
- Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention (US CDC)
Lead in Water
- FAQ: Lead in Schools (PDF)
- Is There Lead in My Drinking Water? (PDF) (EPA)
- How Lead Gets in Your Drinking Water (PDF) (EPA)
- How to Identify Lead Free Fixtures (PDF) (EPA)
Instructions and Training for Schools
Mapped Results for School Lead Testing
Updated 8/31/2023
