Update: Since the reporting for this article was completed, the filters have been replaced on water fountains with bottle-fillers. On the date of publication, the filters are functional.
For multiple weeks, the water filters on the refillable water fountain by the third floor bathroom in the high school has been on red, meaning it needs to be changed and the water inside of them is no longer being filtered.
A red light on the filter leaves students questioning what it truly means. Is the water bad or is it something else? A red light does not mean that the water being dispensed from it is bad, but rather that it is similar to drinking water straight from a faucet. This means the water is slightly worse but does not pose any issues to anyone drinking it.
Even many students, including Rory O’Neill (‘25) said that he definitely thought the more filtered water tasted better and he was tired of the bad taste.
Principal Callanan has addressed the fact that it needs to be changed. “I will definitely check on why it hasn’t been changed.” The responsibilities for changing it fall on the facilities department and the custodians. Mrs. Callanan said that they still need to order and replace them.
Principal Callanan also said she has plans to try and attempt to even put more of these bottle filling stations into the school. She even went by the school committee meeting the other night to discuss it. “So I actually have worked to get a couple more water bottle filling stations in the high school and my goal is to have a water bottle filling station at each drinking fountain throughout the high school, but they cost about $4,000 each to buy and install so we’re working on that little by little.”
Adding more would be a nice addition to the school, and there is already a new one in place in the field house lobby. Although more filling stations would be nice, the filters still need to be changed on them on a regular basis. “What we need to think about is that we need to have a system to replace the filters, you can’t just install them and leave them,” Mrs. Callanan said.
