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PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Oregon's 197 school districts could spend summer break crafting procedures for testing lead, radon and other chemicals at their campuses ahead of Oct. 1, when the plans would be handed over to the state.
These "Healthy and Safe Facilities Plans" were announced Tuesday by Gov. Kate Brown, who said she directed the Oregon Department of Education to draft requirements for testing and monitoring the health safety of campus buildings that otherwise don't exist for schools at the state or federal level.
Brown's directive comes after last month's disclosure of high lead levels found in drinking water at two Portland schools, igniting community outcry at a time when the Flint, Michigan, water scandal has brought national attention to the issue.
The Oregon Department of Education will discuss the draft rules during its next meeting Thursday, and is accepting the public's input through Aug. 17.
"Any threat to the health and safety of a child in any school or classroom is unacceptable," Brown said in a statement, adding that as state-level agencies respond to the crisis, "local school districts and public charter schools also have the obligation to ensure transparency and accountability to parents and communities."
Under the preliminary rules, school districts would submit plans for testing water, air quality and hazardous waste sites — paying attention to lead and radon specifically — with any results reported annually to the state and disclosed to the community online.
The draft rules don't say how often these tests should occur, but Amy Wojcicki, spokeswoman for the education department, said schools will go by whatever testing frequency is recommended by a federal regulatory agency.
"So if it's an (Environmental Protection Agency) guideline, it'll be whatever the EPA regulations are," Wojcicki.
Information on potential costs or funding sources for those costs was not immediately available.
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