A Community Issue

Clean Schools Initiative became passionate about protecting school sites when our school district purchased a former petrochemical research and development facility to re-purpose as an elementary school. Why would school districts purchase environmentally questionable land?

Due to declining school budgets, districts have sought cheap land to build new schools. The ability to attain cheaper industrial property may initially be appealing, but one that creates unnecessary and unfortunate opportunities for exposure to contamination and increased risk to human health. In addition, many urban areas and growing suburban communities face a shortfall of undeveloped land and a limited number of sites available for new school construction. School districts have found themselves turning to existing land they may not have otherwise considered because of limited options.

A chronological history of the environmental issues, documents and decisions from Grandview Hills Elementary, Leander Independent School District, can be viewed here:

August 2008 — EPA Pre-Occupancy Sampling Review Letter
August 2008 — TCEQ Pre-Occupancy Sampling Review Letter
July 2008 — Weston Pre-Occupancy Sampling Results Report
July 2008 — Weston Pre-Occupancy Sampling Plan
June 2008 — EPA Letter to LISD regarding pre-occupancy sampling
June 2008 — TDSHS Revised Health Consultation
April 2008 — Monitoring well installation report prepared by Weston Solutions. Groundwater was not encountered during this drilling event; therefore no samples were collected.
February 2008 — A health consultation, prepared by the Texas Department of State Health Services and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, reports the following conclusion: "Based upon our analysis of the February through April 2007 sampling data, and with the removal and replacement of the contaminated soil and the installation of the subfloor venting system, we do not expect to see health effects in adults or children associated with exposure to chemicals in the proposed elementary school and from areas on the school property. Therefore, exposure at the proposed school site from past activities represents no apparent public health hazard." The report also states that: "However, the indoor air should be sampled after construction of the school is complete but before the school opens for occupancy. This would allow for the sub-slab vacuum system to be tested and to determine what compounds are present in the indoor air from off-gassing of paint, flooring, and furniture."
January 2008 — Letter from TCEQ to Leander ISD requesting installation and sampling of one groundwater monitoring well to determine if a release of contamination had occurred to groundwater.
November 2007 — The EPA issued recommendations to LISD for additional testing and remediation based on the October 2007 report from the National Exposure Research laboratory.
November 2007 — The TCEQ issued a letter to LISD reviewing the status of environmental investigations to date.
October 2007 — A report completed by EPA’s National Exposure Research Laboratory questions some of the assumptions and conclusions presented in the Weston report; including the indoor air and sub-slab sampling conditions and protocol used to collect data at the site, and the necessity of mitigation measures and a monitoring plan to ensure prevention of exposure to hazardous chemicals below the slab.
August 2007 — In a notification letter, the TCEQ concluded that while the available data indicates the site can be safely developed for its intended use as an elementary school, the threats to groundwater and ecological receptors cannot yet be ruled out.
July 2007 — The Texas Commission of Environmental Quality (TCEQ) Pre-Cerclis Report – ranked the school site a moderate to high potential hazard (4 out of 5-indicating the second highest designation ranking the “seriousness of the situation”). The report identified three areas of contamination, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in soil, chloroform in the sub-slab air under the school building and trimethylbenzenes and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in soil vapor widespread across the site.
July 2007 — Concurrently, the TCEQ also released a Health Effects Evaluation of the school.
July 2007 — The TCEQ prepared a Fact Sheet for citizens to summarize their Pre-Cerclis Report and Health Effects Evaluation Report.
July 2007 — EPA’s No Further Action Document refers site to the TCEQ for lead regulatory oversight. The EPA stated to the TCEQ that "because of the future use of the site as a school and the presence of contaminants, it is important that these contamination issues be addressed. EPA supports further investigation and cleanup by the LISD and the plans and results presented to the TCEQ for their further review and oversight."
July 2007 — The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) also prepared a Public Health Review of the original data collect from the site up to April 2007.
April 2007 — District delays opening of school due to discovery of mold, construction delays, and poor weather. Mold remediation estimated to cost $3.7M.
April 2007 — The Final Environmental Evaluation Report, prepared by Weston Solutions, declared the school safe with remediation and corrective action, including soil removal and an engineered venting system to remove hazardous chemicals from beneath the concrete slab of the school.
January 2007 — Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) citizen petition for immediate assistance.