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A user-friendly, web-based dashboard designed by the �鶹app will help parents more easily access information about lead levels in the drinking water at their child’s school or child care in any part of the state. 

The website, built by UNH’s NH GRANIT, provides a comprehensive display for anyone to find the results of lead levels in drinking water at kid-focused facilities, along with any remediation steps that have been taken to address levels that may exceed the program action level of 5 parts per billion (ppb). The dashboard, which was recently upgraded, is part of the N.H. Get the Lead Out of Drinking Water program established by the N.H. Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) to protect school-aged children from the harmful effects of lead exposure. 

“Developing this dashboard was a great way to do something that benefits communities across the state” said Rebecca Bannon, NH GRANIT project director. “Parents can go and find the info they need, and schools can be transparent about the results and any changes they’re making to protect kids.”

In collaboration with the NHDES Drinking Water and Groundwater Bureau, Bannon recently developed a corresponding  web page that provides more easy-to-use context to the project and helps users navigate the dashboard. It also provides links to the state resources that inform schools on program enrollment and funding access. 

Lead is a naturally occurring element but is not often found in drinking water sources. Instead, it typically shows up in drinking water when a building’s plumbing fixtures, pipes or the solder connecting the pipes start wearing away. Lead can have health risks, especially for young children because they absorb more lead and are more sensitive to its damaging effects on the brain and central nervous system. Lead does not make water taste, look, or smell different, so the only way to tell if there is lead in water is through water testing. 

New Hampshire law RSA 485:17-a requires all public and nonpublic schools and licensed child care programs to sample for lead in drinking water at outlets where water is available for consumption by children. Facilities are required to conduct testing for 3 rounds which are to be conducted 6 months apart. NHDES also has grant funding available to assist facilities with reducing lead in drinking water.

NH GRANIT is New Hampshire’s statewide geographic information system (GIS) clearinghouse and is part of UNH’s Earth Systems Research Center. One of its foundations is its collaboration with state agencies like NHDES, the Department of Transportation and other bureaus, according to David Justice, NH GRANIT’s former director who worked on developing the dashboard.

“The project has been an especially satisfying one because of the obvious benefits the application provides to the whole N.H. community, and help spotlight UNH’s NH GRANIT ability and willingness to collaborate with and support the state’s agencies and citizens,” said Justice.

Both Justice and Bannon said that NH GRANIT was uniquely poised to collaborate on this dashboard because the team could leverage their software and technical expertise to create a successful product that is useful and benefits everyone. 

About UNH

The �鶹app inspires innovation and transforms lives in our state, nation and world. More than 15,000 students from 50 states and 87 countries engage with an award-winning faculty in top-ranked programs in business, engineering, law, health and human services, liberal arts and the sciences across more than 200 programs of study. A Carnegie Classification R1 institution, UNH partners with NASA, NOAA, NSF, and NIH, and received over $250 million in competitive external funding in FY24 to further explore and define the frontiers of land, sea and space.