Protecting Children from Contaminants at School

Schools built on hazardous waste sites? Yes, it really happens. In 1978, the discovery of toxic chemicals leaching into schools and homes built atop a former landfill brought international attention to a small New York neighborhood called Love Canal. The Love Canal story helped spark a national movement to address the toxic legacies of the past. In 2002, researchers mapped school sites in just five states and found more than 1,100 schools located within a half-mile of a known contaminated site, affecting more than 600,000 children in California, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, and New York. In this podcast: how researchers and community members teamed up to investigate contamination at Rhode Island schools.