LANSING, MI, MARCH 24, 2020 -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has awarded $1,190,000 in grant funding to assist the Michigan Department of Energy, Great Lakes, and Environment (EGLE) with identifying sources of lead in drinking water in schools or childcare facilities.
“This new grant program shows EPA’s ongoing commitment to protect Michigan’s children from the harmful effects of lead exposure,” said EPA Region 5 Administrator Kurt Thiede. “This funding will help Michigan improve protocols for finding lead and ensuring that schools and childcare facilities have access to safe drinking water.”
Under EPA’s new Voluntary Lead Testing in Schools and Child Care grant program, EPA has awarded $43.7 million in grants nationwide to help fund the implementation of testing for lead in drinking water. This funding is a resource that creates or expands programs to test for lead in drinking water at schools and childcare programs in states and the District of Columbia. The grant will allow EGLE to test 400 childcare centers throughout the state.
“Following the Flint water crisis, Michigan adopted some of the most stringent rules in the country to protect people, especially children, from lead poisoning,” said Rep. Haley Stevens (MI-11). “During this current coronavirus pandemic, it is now as important as ever to protect the public health of our children by ensuring they are not being exposed to toxins in water. I am glad that Michigan will receive critical funding from the EPA to continue this important work.”
“Parents deserve the peace of mind knowing their children’s drinking water is safe,” said Rep. Jack Bergman (MI-01). “This WIIN grant will allow schools and childcare facilities across Michigan to ensure the water they are consuming is lead free. I’m thankful for the continued commitment by the EPA to protect the health of our next generation.”
EPA’s Training, Testing, and Taking Action for Reducing Lead in Drinking Water in Schools will be used by Michigan’s Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy to assist schools in implementing lead in drinking water testing including identifying sources of lead such as fountains. Testing results carried out using grant funds must be made publicly available.
Learn more at: https://www.epa.gov/safewater/grants.
