Manchester High School West

“Home of the Blue Knights”

9 Notre Dame Avenue - Manchester NH 03102

Ph. 603.624.6384 - Fax 603.628.6153     Web https://west.mansd.org/o/west

Jerold White                                              Richard R. Dichard                                           Laura E. Lord

Assistant Principal                                                        Principal                                                      Assistant Principal

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12/8/23

Dear Parents and Guardians,

We are writing to let you know that West High School recently completed testing for lead in drinking water. This is part of an ongoing effort related to New Hampshire’s House Bill 1421, which requires school and child care facilities to test for lead in drinking water and to act when lead is found at levels at or above 5 parts per billion (ppb).

Lead is a toxic heavy metal that has a range of adverse health effects if inhaled or swallowed. Lead rarely occurs naturally in New Hampshire’s drinking water sources (groundwater or surface water) and typically enters drinking water due to the wearing away of piping, faucets, fixtures and other plumbing materials.

Because lead is tasteless, odorless and colorless in drinking water, testing is the only way to learn whether lead is present. It is important to sample each faucet or water fountain that is used for drinking or food prep because test results can vary between locations.

During recent testing, we collected samples from 22 drinking water outlets (e.g., drinking fountains, classroom faucets, kitchen sinks), with 4 samples testing at or above 5 ppb, the level where action must be taken.

We have removed access to these outlets until the problem can be corrected. The table below shows a list of all of the tested outlets, their locations, sample results and our planned remediation.  

All sample results and additional resources from the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) can be viewed at gettheleadoutnh.org.  

Sincerely,

Forrest Ransdell, Assistant Superintendent, Operations