It’s good to hear that the levels of lead in school water in the Butler Area School District are low, especially considering that a study released earlier this year found that students across the state are exposed to dangerous levels of the metal in their drinking water.

On the other hand, any amount of lead in drinking water used by schoolchildren is alarming, and we hope the school district does its due diligence to remove it completely before the start of the school year on Aug. 29.

In March, advocacy organization PennEnvironment gave the Keystone State an “F” in a study on lead in school drinking water.

Even more shocking, the report noted that state law encourages — but doesn’t require — annual testing for lead, and districts are not mandated to provide test results to parents.

Earlier this year, the Eagle reported that lead and copper were detected in all three Karns City district schools last year and that lead had been discovered in Butler Area School District’s water dating to 2016.

This past week, the Butler district’s school board was given results from a water quality inspector who oversees annual testing at its schools.

Out of 191 samples taken from sites within the district, only nine returned “action levels” of lead that were higher than those deemed acceptable by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

At the meeting, it was indicated that the water sources found to be over those levels are being addressed or shut down.

We’re glad to hear that. It’s also encouraging that Eric Buzza, Butler’s inspector, noted that the district is among the more proactive in terms of water testing policies.

However, it’s troubling to hear that one of the worst results among the nine problem areas was a trio of samples from the Intermediate High School’s Cafeteria A, which likely is a highly used source for drinking water.

The test showed that a faulty valve was allowing hot water — which is more corrosive in piping and, therefore, not intended for consumption — to backflow into cold water plumbing.

Meanwhile, other areas are being remedied.

Center Avenue Community Schools will have some plumbing and a faucet replaced, while two fountains are being replaced with water bottle filling stations at the senior high school.

Exposure to lead can be harmful to children even at low levels, according to the EPA, and damage the central and peripheral nervous system as well as cause behavioral problems, learning disabilities, stunted growth, impaired hearing and impeded formation and function of blood cells.

We hope the district continues to be a leader in terms of testing, and far surpass the state’s overall dismal numbers.