ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Students and parents from Rochester Prep and All City high school, concerned over the presence of Trichloroethene, have successfully pushed the two schools to move locations.
After parents and students learned of the presence of a chemical called TCE in the buildings and staged a protest, the charter school and the district felt they needed to respond.
“It would be unwise if we just dismissed people even though their feelings are not based on science, so RCSD said if you want we have a place for you to go,” said Van White, RCSD Board President, about the decision to allow the move.
White says he cannot stress enough that the building is safe. The presence of TCE is not new either, it’s been public knowledge since 2009 when the property owners volunteered themselves to be part of a brownfield site cleanup program run by the DEC.
“We did find out that was a brownfield site, and the experts went in and since then they have done everything they needed to do, to determine that site was safe,” said White.
The DEC has been working since then to maintain TCE levels so that they fall below recommended levels, which, they do.
“We have to stick with the facts. That’s our charge as public officials, and cancer is not connected to that building and like I said, three government agencies have said that the property is safe,” said White.
Nevertheless, parents of Rochester Prep and those of All City students, will now have the option to move if they’d like.
original link: http://www.rochesterfirst.com/news/local-news/rcsd-allowing-all-city-high-school-students-to-move-locations-amidst-protests/877922036