June 13, 2016
Chicago Sun-Times
A critical assignment: Every Illinois school should test its water
To its credit, the Chicago Public Schools system is aggressively testing school water for the presence of lead following the crisis wracking Flint, Michigan.
Tests are being conducted on the drinking fountains, water coolers and faucets of every school in the nation’s third-largest school district, even though federal and state regulations don’t require it.
So far, 19 of 74 CPS schools with test results have been shown to have levels of lead from at least one water source that exceeded federal standards. Even more had lesser levels. Finger-prick tests of some children at the first CPS school with elevated lead levels indicated enough lead in those students’ bodies to warrant further testing.
We can’t assume, obviously, that the threat of lead in school water ends at the city’s border. All Illinois schools - including parochial and private schools - would be responsible to follow CPS’ lead.
Consider three key points:
- Illinois has more lead service lines than any other state in the nation. Such lines were commonly used in buildings constructed before 1986. Hundreds of CPS schools were built before then. So were most of the Chicago area’s Catholic schools, both city and suburban.
To combat the dangers of lead service lines, cities add corrosion-fighting chemicals to the water, creating a protective coating on lead pipes. But this is not foolproof. Street work, water main replacement and plumbing repairs can shake loose this coating, causing lead to leach into water. One recent class-action suit contends this is a particular threat in Chicago, where Mayor Rahm Emanuel has been on a crusade to replace hundreds of miles of century-old water lines. However, other Illinois municipalities with pre-1986 schools routinely do street and water work, too.
- Not only older schools are at risk. Some post-1986 non-lead pipes can pose a problem if they hold lead in the solder or fittings. Los Angeles Unified school district doesn’t have lead pipes, but it found lead leaching from brass fittings it chose for bubblers on its new water fountains. LA’s newer schools tended to have fountains with the highest concentrations of lead.
- Lead in water knows no economic or racial boundaries. Nationally, low-income and minority children experience higher average blood lead levels, often linked to lead paint exposure. But across Illinois, at least 132 of about 1,750 water systems have exceeded federal lead standards during at least one year since 2004, says State Rep. David McSweeney (R-Barrington Hills). And that includes systems serving well-heeled Barrington, as well Lake, DuPage and Cook counties.
McSweeney is co-sponsor of a joint legislative resolution requiring the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency to monitor the state’s water systems, especially those with past problems, and to produce a final report with policy recommendations by Jan. 1. Though the resolution, which took effect May 31, requires only water system tests, McSweeney would welcome an EPA policy recommendation that all Illinois schools be tested regularly.
Let’s understand what’s at stake here.
Infants and children exposed to lead can experience delays in physical and mental development, lower IQs, reduced attention spans, learning disabilities and poor classroom performance. Lead exposure has been negatively correlated with adult brain volume, linked to ADHD and associated with higher rates of violent crime.
Although the federal EPA limit for lead in water is 15 parts per billion, both the EPA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention agree: there is no totally safe level of lead in water.
A child’s ingestion of even one particle of lead can be very dangerous, warned Yanna Lambrinidou, a water quality expert at Virginia Tech. She also noted that a school faucet can test clean 10 times in a row, then on the 11th draw produce a particle - in a loosened piece of solder or rust - with a lot of lead in it. So clean results from one-draw tests per faucet can be misleading.
As a result, multiple, regular tests of each school water source seems prudent. Such tests may not be perfect, but they are one way to catch potential problems with long-term, dangerous and costly consequences.
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June 11, 2016
The (Springfield) State Journal-Register
Illinois right to extend medical marijuana pilot program
Last week, Ohio Gov. John Kasich signed a bill to legalize medical marijuana, making Ohio the 25th state in the country, the halfway point, to permit medical marijuana.
In Illinois, a medical marijuana pilot program was approved in 2014, but the program didn’t actually get up and running until last November.
Before adjourning, the Illinois Senate and House had both voted to extend the pilot program by 2 1/2 years, from January 2018, when it had been set to sunset, to 2020. Gov. Bruce Rauner has indicated that he also supports the change.
The changes to the program also will add post-traumatic stress syndrome and terminal illnesses with a diagnosis of six months or less to live to the list of conditions that qualify patients to use medical cannabis. The state currently certifies 39 diseases and conditions as qualifying for patients.
As of the end of April, Illinois had 36 dispensaries where patients can purchase medical cannabis, including one in Springfield. About 6,200 patients have qualified to purchase the drug, and as of the end of April, about $8.5 million worth of medical marijuana had been sold, according to The Associated Press.
Patients must be recommended by a doctor who certifies that they have a qualifying condition, and that they have a bona fide doctor/patient relationship. The new legislation, which was sponsored by Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie, does make a change in that process; the doctor no longer has to specifically recommend medical cannabis as a treatment option.
In Springfield, HCI Alternatives opened in mid-February.
The dispensary is discreet; many people walking by might not even realize it’s there. Springfield police say there have been no crimes at the site; the only incidents have been four burglar alarms, all of which were false alarms.
Likewise, in accordance with state regulations, the dispensary’s security protocols are detailed, extensive and strict. In short, it’s blended in fairly seamlessly with its surroundings.
Given the delayed start in getting the pilot program off the ground, it makes sense for the state to extend it accordingly. Adding the two additional conditions to the pilot program also seems reasonable.
The agreement to extend the pilot program involved lawmakers and Rauner - who initially opposed the idea - working together.
That’s been sorely lacking during a session scarred forever by the ongoing budget standoff debacle.
At least this was one small area where progress was made. Illinois must keep monitoring and tweaking the medical marijuana program, but this step represents a sensible move forward.
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June 10, 2016
The (DeKalb) Daily Chronicle
Brighter forecast for redistricting reform
The weekend weather forecast for DeKalb County calls for highs in the 90s. Whew!
The political forecast for Illinois portends a long, hot summer if legislators and the governor can’t resolve their nearly year-long budget dispute. So what else is new?
Fortunately, the redistricting reform forecast for Illinois is looking brighter these days.
On Friday, attorneys for the Independent Maps coalition filed documents in response to a lawsuit filed by an ally of House Speaker Michael Madigan, the powerful Chicago Democrat who opposes the Independent Map Amendment that would strip politicians of their once-a-decade redistricting authority and turn that duty over to an 11-member citizens commission.
Redistricting reform lawyers actually filed three documents.
The first is a 38-page motion for judgment on the pleadings, which argues for dismissal of the lawsuit.
The second is a collection of supporting exhibits, which totals 85 pages.
The third is a paragraph-by-paragraph rebuttal of the complaint, totaling 30 pages.
To us, their case looks strong. They have learned well from previous remap reform failures.
On June 30, oral arguments are scheduled in Cook County Circuit Court. The Independent Maps coalition hopes the court system upholds the campaign to place the amendment on the Nov. 8 ballot.
The court case follows the successful passage of the Independent Maps’ petition test at the state Board of Elections.
If you wonder what all this has to do with you, just look at our unresponsive Illinois General Assembly, record-long budget impasse, financial woes, and dysfunctional state.
Redistricting abuse by parties in power limits competition and accountability for state representatives and senators, who come to care more about pleasing political bosses in Springfield than the folks back home.
However, if legislative districts are no longer drawn by politicians, they would be more likely to serve the public better through elected officials who are more accountable for their actions, or lack thereof.
That’s a long-range forecast we hope becomes reality for the good of our long-suffering state.
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