Wyoming Healthy Schools

Events, Opportunities, & Resources

Event: Back to School Night at David Street Station in Casper, Wednesday, August 12, 2026, 5:00-8:00 p.m. Come visit our Wyoming Healthy Schools booth at this free public event with games, activities, and prizes!

Opportunity: The Clean Air School Challenge from the American Lung Association supports schools in creating healthier learning environments. The program provides education and training, technical assistance, recognition, and grant opportunities. Learn more at https://www.lung.org/clean-air/indoor-air/building-type-air-resources/at-school/clean-air-school-challenge

Resources: Tribal Lead Curriculum—Lead Awareness in Indian Country: Keeping our Children Healthy!, designed with more than 200 tribal partners, https://www.epa.gov/lead/tribal-lead-curriculum

Diving Deeper: Lead in drinking water and what you can do about it

I didn’t plan to write about lead for this issue. However, the universe has been conspiring lately. First, my daughter moved to an apartment for the summer. When she told me the water coming out the faucet was rust-colored, four words popped out of my mouth: “Test it for lead.” You can’t see or taste lead in water, but the surprising color reminded me she’s in an older building that could have lead pipes. After that, I received two separate messages about lead in drinking water from unrelated email groups I’ve been on for years. So, I did a deep dive into the subject. I thought you might like to learn more about it, too.

A brief (and surprising) history
I was shocked to learn it was legal to use lead pipes for drinking water in the United States until 1986, when amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act prohibited the installation of new lead pipes. However, the law didn’t require replacing old lead pipes, and new “lead-free” pipes were allowed to contain up to 8% lead. In 2011, the Reduction of Lead in Drinking Water Act cut the amount of lead allowed in pipes to 0.25%. There are exemptions to these limits for irrigation, outdoor watering, manufacturing, fire hydrants, and other uses. In 2024, changes to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (U.S. EPA) Lead and Copper Rule came out. These changes require most water systems to replace all service lines containing lead within 10 years. Service lines are the pipes that connect homes, schools, and other buildings to water systems.

The bottom line: Older schools, homes and other buildings may have pipes, solder, plumbing fixtures, and/or service lines that leach lead into the water people drink.

Why lead matters
Lead is a toxic metal. There is no safe level of lead. Kids face more harm from lead than adults, and the younger the child, the greater the risk. This is because children’s bodies absorb more lead compared to adults and also because kids are generally exposed to more lead through common childhood behaviors, like playing on the ground and putting hands and other objects in their mouths. (This especially pertains to lead from old paint and contaminated soil.) Also, kids are more vulnerable to the developmental and nervous system problems caused by lead.

Early symptoms of lead poisoning can be easy to miss—tiredness, irritability, loss of appetite, stomach pain and/or constipations, shorter attention span, or trouble sleeping. Later symptoms for adults include poor muscle control, nerve damage, high blood pressure, vision and hearing problems, and reproductive problems. Later symptoms for kids include brain damage, slower growth, behavior problems, anemia, hearing loss, hyperactivity, liver and kidney damage, and learning disabilities. In extreme cases, lead poisoning can cause death. In pregnancy, lead can cause low birth weight, premature birth, developmental problems, and miscarriage. At any age, the sooner lead poisoning is treated, the better.

How to test for lead in drinking water
There are regulations for municipal water systems to test for lead and make their findings public. You can also call your local health department or water department to ask about water testing for homes or schools. Some water departments or states have programs that will pay for water testing if requested. Many hardware stores also sell simple lead test kits, although make sure to get the kind for testing drinking water. These are different than the kits for testing lead paint. The test kit my daughter purchased cost about $25 and gave results within ten minutes. Unfortunately, her water tested positive for lead.

How to protect kids and others if there’s lead in your water
There are many ways to reduce the amount of lead in water. Some of the simpler ones are more practical on a small scale (like at home or in a single classroom) than for an entire school, but they all can help.

• If possible, purchase a water filter that specifically says it removes lead. It’s important to get one that’s third-party certified. This guarantees the filter does the job it claims to do. Make sure to change the cartridge on the filter according to the directions that come with it.
  
  
• Use only cold water for drinking and preparing food, including making baby formula. Hot water leaches more lead from pipes and fittings. If you need hot water for something you’re making, get cold water from the tap and then heat it on a stove or in a microwave.
  
  
• Let water run for a period of time before you use it. This flushes the pipes, providing water that hasn’t been sitting in the lead pipes as long. At home, you can flush the pipes by taking a shower or doing laundry.
  
  
• Regularly clean the aerator on your faucet (the screen that unscrews on the end of the faucet). Lead particles can get trapped in it.
  
  
• Find out from your water company/department if you have a lead service line, the pipe that connects from your home or school to the water main. If you do, let them know you want to participate in their service line replacement program.
  
  
• If you have lead pipes or plumbing fixtures in your home, have them replaced if possible. If you live in a home you don’t own, talk to your landlord about the possibility of replacing them. Joining forces with other tenants may help.
  
  
• If your school has lead pipes or fixtures, or lead in the water from other sources, share your concern with the principal, school district, school board, health department, local health providers, other parents/staff, and more. Once voice can make a difference, but partnerships and allies can make change happen faster.
  
  

Other Tips

• Consider getting your own lead levels tested and those of your children if you find the water at school or home has lead. Early treatment of lead poisoning can prevent permanent health problems.
  
  
• Eat a healthy diet that has plenty of vitamin C, iron, and calcium. These nutrients help your body absorb less lead.
  
  
• Learn more about lead in drinking water by calling the U.S. EPA’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 1-800-426-4791. For other questions about preventing lead poisoning, call 1-800-424-LEAD.
  
  

Sources
Lead and Children’s Health Story Map, U.S. EPA, https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/8c13aadca257491d9e99428b2c9f13db, viewed 5/27/26

Lead in Drinking Water, U.S. EPA, https://www.epa.gov/lead/lead-drinking-water, last updated 4/24/26

3T’s for Reducing Lead in Drinking Water—information for schools and childcare facilities, U.S. EPA, https://www.epa.gov/ground-water-and-drinking-water/3ts-reducing-lead-drinking-water, last updated 3/2/26

Lead Poisoning, Wyoming Department of Health, https://health.wyo.gov/publichealth/infectious-disease-epidemiology-unit/disease/lead-poisoning/, viewed 5/27/26

The Wyoming Lead Service Line Project, https://www.wyriskit.com/, 2024

Consumer Tool for Identifying Point-of-Use and Pitcher Filters Certified to Reduce Lead in Drinking Water, U.S. EPA, https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2024-06/how-to-id-filters-certified-to-reduce-lead-in-drinking-water-epa_june-2024.pdf, June 2024

About Lead in Drinking Water, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, https://www.cdc.gov/lead-prevention/prevention/drinking-water.html, 8/20/25

Lead at Superfund Sites: Human Health, https://www.epa.gov/superfund/lead-superfund-sites-human-health, last updated 12/19/25

U.S. EPA, Lead Poisoning and Your Children pamphlet, https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2024-09/lead-poisoning-and-your-children-eng-2024.pdf, March 2024

Use of Lead Free Pipes, Fittings, Fixtures, Solder, and Flux for Drinking Water, U.S. EPA, https://www.epa.gov/sdwa/use-lead-free-pipes-fittings-fixtures-solder-and-flux-drinking-water, last updated 5/19/26

EPA Announces $2.9 Billion for States to Reduce Lead in Drinking Water and Protect Americans’ Health, https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-announces-29-billion-states-reduce-lead-drinking-water-and-protect-americans, 5/20/26

Fact Sheet: EPA’s Lead and Copper Rule Improvements, U.S. EPA, https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2024-10/final_lcri_fact-sheet_general_public.pdf, October 2024

LCRI Questions and Answers (includes steps to minimize your exposure to lead in drinking water), U.S. EPA, https://www.epa.gov/ground-water-and-drinking-water/lcri-questions-and-answers, last updated 3/11/26

Protect Your Tap: A Quick Check for Lead, U.S. EPA, https://www.epa.gov/ground-water-and-drinking-water/protect-your-tap-quick-check-lead, last updated 5/4/26