Buildings and Grounds

Scott Bellows
Director of Buildings and Grounds

sbellows@mendhamtwp.org
973-543-7107 ext. 1318

Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act

AHERA 40 CFR Part 763, Subpart E

Each year the Mendham Township Public School District is required by the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA) to notify each building occupant about the Asbestos Containing Building Materials (ACBM) in the District’s building. Information pertaining to that notification is detailed below.

To assure that all buildings are safe and in compliance with the requirements of AHERA, the district has retained the services of Nadine Bello, of New Wave Environmental. This company is certified to inspect each building for ACBM and develop a plan for the management of these materials. The Management Plan for each building documents the locations and condition of asbestos and presents a plan of action for removal and/or maintenance of these materials.

Each building has a copy of the Management Plan and it is available for your inspection in the school office. Copies of the Management Plan for all schools and buildings are on file at the Board of Education office.

Every six months all potentially friable ACBM are inspected for possible deterioration. If any deterioration is found, the area is prepared and cleaned by trained certified personnel.

Asbestos remediation and maintenance is conducted within the guidelines of Asbestos Containing Materials in Schools: Final Rule and Notice (40CFR Part 763). Specific details about removal activities will be announced 20 days prior to the start of any such project. Tests will be taken of the air quality during and after each removal project.

Water Safety and Information

Mendham Township’s water is of the highest quality. Our schools receive their water from the Southeast Morris County and American Water Company. These providers test their water many times each year at various points throughout the system. The Mendham Township School District recently had water in both school buildings. Testing was performed by Garden State Labs in Hillside, NJ. Water samples were taken from every outlet in both buildings. The analytical reports on the samples can be found at the link below. Going forward, water will be tested annually based on recommendations from the EPA.

Over the last few months, there have been many reports regarding lead in drinking water in schools. In light of these reports, we initiated a full inspection and testing program to test for lead in our schools’ drinking water. A certified lab has now completed testing in both buildings. All of the reports are labeled as "drinking water", as that is the standard set for the tests regardless of whether they are sinks or drinking fountains. The results are posted on our website under the Building & Grounds section of the “About MTSD” tab.

The EPA recommends that lead levels in drinking water be below 15 parts per billion (ppb). Results indicated that one drinking fountain location at the Middle School tested at 16 parts per billion, or 1 part per billion above normal. In both buildings, several sinks tested above the recommended level. It is important to note that the testing was completed from water that had been standing 8 -18 hours, which is the EPA testing protocol. Once a school's water system has been flushed, the amounts of lead would be lower. Therefore, we do not believe that results represent the normal water conditions in our schools. Please note that we have now begun a practice of flushing the water systems every morning to start every day with fresh water in the systems. However, we are not relying on flushing alone.

In the locations where elevated levels of lead were identified in the testing, the faucets and the water fountain have been taken out of service. We are also replacing the faucets and pipes, and are installing water filters at these locations. Once we have made the repairs we will retest all faucets in all schools and will also post those results. While there is no cause for concern about the drinking water at our schools, we understand that you take your child's safety seriously and we share that commitment to safety with you. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.