Lead Found In Middle School Basement
Parents of Garden City Middle School students recently received a letter informing them that a portion of the building had to be cleaned over winter recess after it was learned that a rifle range once existed in what is now a crawl space in the basement.
"A rifle range automatically brings with it the notion that you can have lead contamination," Superintendent Dr. Robert Fiersen said at the Feb. 24th meeting of the Garden City Board of Education.
The space was found by an architect from the firm Burton, Behrendt and Smith, who was inspecting all district facilities as part of his firm's study of possibly issuing a bond to fund capital improvements in the district. The space is located in the basement, adjacent to the boys' locker room. Superintendent Dr. Robert Feirsen explained that the room, which has not been used for decades, is an odd shape which quickly becomes a crawl space with a sloped ceiling.
The district hired Jason Broderick of J.C. Broderick & Associates, Inc. to perform an analysis of the crawl space as well as all adjacent areas to determine if contamination was present and at what levels. Broderick determined that the crawl space and adjacent storage area used by staff for athletic equipment had higher levels of lead than acceptable under stringent guidelines used by the Dept. of Housing and Urban Development and the Environmental Protection Agency. There is no venting or ductwork in the room so contamination could not spread to other parts of the building.
The other areas tested, which included the boys' locker room and shower, had readings which fell significantly below the guidelines and were not considered to be contaminated.
The crawl space, storage area and materials being stored there were cleaned, and as an extra precaution, the district had the locker room and shower cleaned also. The crawl space has been sealed and a barrier has been erected inside the room to prevent any future contamination to other areas.
The latest test performed by Broderick reveals that all areas now have lead concentrations below detectable limits. Several agencies, including the EPA, the NYS Dept. of Health and the Dept. of Environmental Conservation visited the school on Tuesday to confirm the test results.
"We opened as usual because we had a clean bill of health," Dr. Feirsen said.
School Board President Colleen Foley asked for the total cost of the lead remediation. Broderick responded that has yet to be determined since he is still working with the district to ensure the lead is contained and is developing a long-term plan for the safe removal of the contamination.
The letter sent home to parents can also be found on the school district's Web site, www.gardencity.k12.ny.us.
