New environmental testing at Richmond’s Kennedy High School found no evidence of health concerns from chemical solvents in the soil, the West Contra Costa Unified School District said Friday.
Worries about vapor intrusion from PCE — perchloroethylene or tetrachloroethylene, classified as a likely carcinogen — had prompted plans to delay a return to the campus for the opening of school on Tuesday.
The school district announced the new data Thursday at a community town hall with the Department of Toxic Substances Control and the City of Richmond.
“The fact that the lab was able to detect a whisper of PCE confirms what we already knew, that this is at the doorstep of the school underground, but given how low these levels are, this confirms that there is virtually no risk in the existing buildings,” Dr. Gina Solomon of the University of California, San Francisco, said in a statement released by the district.
“That said, it was a good decision to add the vapor barrier to the design for the new Kennedy buildings in order to remain vigilant about this issue,” said Solomon, chief of Occupational, Environmental, and Climate Medicine at UCSF, who the district said was briefed by the DTSC.
The school district officially lifted restrictions on entry to the Kennedy campus and said it is working with labor partners and staff to begin planning a transition back to classrooms.
Detectable levels of PCE were found in the Kennedy High School kitchen and metal shop. The district said it was temporarily pausing use of the kitchen and metal shop while it evaluated use of the space.