Water Quality at WPS



Water Quality in the Watertown Public Schools


In November 2016, nearly 300 samples from sinks and fountains throughout the district were submitted for testing to the Mass Water Resources Authority. These were ‘1st draw’ samples, meaning they were taken without letting the water run for a period of time, providing a worse-case scenario. The results were as follows:

293 samples submitted
287 (98%) samples tested below the Action Level of 15 ug/L (parts per billion)
6 samples were found to be above the Action Level. The 6 samples were acceptable.
3 at Hosmer - one in back kitchen sink, 2 in classroom sinks with bubblers
1 at the High School - sink in nurse's office restroom.
1 at the Middle School – sink in kitchen
1 at Phillips—sink in room 30 in preschool area.

What steps were taken:

We replaced all six of the affected fixtures and bubblers
Working with the DPW, samples are taken annually from a sampling of public buildings including one school.