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EPA Region 6 Releases Air Monitoring Data from Seven Texas Schools

Release Date: 01/25/2010
Contact Information: Dave Bary at 214-665-2200 or r6press@epa.gov

(Dallas, Texas – January 25, 2010) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 6 today announced the air toxics monitoring data from seven Texas schools has been posted on the agency’s Web site. The schools are IC Evans Elementary School, Burkburnett, Texas; Lamkin Elementary School, Cypress, Texas; NW Harllee Elementary School, Dallas, Texas; San Jacinto Elementary/Deer Park Junior High School, Deer Park, Texas; Temple Elementary School, Diboll, Texas; and Young Scholars Academy, Houston, Texas. Preliminary air toxics monitoring data show that, to date, levels of the key hazardous air pollutants monitored at each school were well below levels of short-term concern. That includes the first results from Temple Elementary and Young Scholars Academy, which were posted to the Web today.

EPA scientists warn against drawing conclusions at this point; the project is designed to determine whether long-term exposure poses health concerns for children and staff. Once monitoring is complete, the full set of results from all of the schools will be analyzed to evaluate the potential for health concerns related to long-term exposure of hazardous air pollutants. EPA will post these analyses to the Web once they are complete.

The Schools Air Toxics Monitoring Initiative, which is monitoring 63 schools in 22 states is designed to help EPA and state environmental agencies understand whether long-term exposure to toxics in the outdoor air poses health concerns for children and staff at schools, as well as residents in the surrounding community. The pollutants being monitored vary by school, based on the best available information about pollution sources in the area.

The data is posted at https://www.epa.gov/schoolair/schools.html

Outdoor air at each of the schools will be monitored for approximately 60 days, and air quality monitors will take a minimum of ten daily samples during the sampling period. The air toxics monitoring has been conducted by the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) and Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) at their respective schools.

More about activities in EPA Region 6: https://www.epa.gov/region6

EPA audio file is available at https://www.epa.gov/region6/6xa/podcast/jan2010.html