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Some of the safety issues that I am concerned about have to do with existing conditions and infrastucture that were there before the school site was chosen. The proxmity to the Hesperia airport and to the rail road tracks behind it, both less than a mile and a half. I have heard of a high pressure gas line running just south of the school but I don't have confirmation yet. And the conditions of traffic and safe routes to school issues that have already surfaced. These narratives are from the State Department of Education. 

 

Evaluating Safety Factors

Safety is the first consideration in the selection of school sites. Certain health and safety requirements are governed by state regulations and the policies of the Department. In selecting a school site, the selection team should consider the following factors: (1) proximity to airports; (2) proximity to high-voltage power transmission lines; (3) presence of toxic and hazardous substances; (4) hazardous air emissions and facilities within a quarter mile; (5) other health hazards; (6) proximity to railroads; (7) proximity to high-pressure natural gas lines, gasoline lines, pressurized sewer lines, or high-pressure water pipelines; (8) proximity to propane tanks; (9) noise; (10) proximity to major roadways; (11) results of geological studies and soils analyses; (12) condition of traffic and school bus safety; (13) safe routes to school; and (14) safety issues for joint-use projects.

Proximity to Airports

The responsibilities of the school district, the California Department of Education, and the Department of Transportation (DOT), Aeronautics Program, Office of Airports, concerning the school site's proximity to runways are contained in Education Code Section 17215 (as amended by Assembly Bill (AB) 747, Chapter 837, Statutes of 1999). (See CCR, Title 5, Section 14011(k).)

As a part of the site selection prescreening process, the school district should determine the proximity of the site to runways. Both the Department and DOT have maps identifying airport locations. If the site is within two nautical miles of an existing airport runway or a potential runway included in an airport master plan, as measured by direct air line from the part of the runway that is nearest to the school site, the following procedures must be followed before the site can be approved:

Electric power transmission lines maintained by power companies may or may not be hazardous to human health. Research continues on the affects of electromagnetic fields (EMF) on human beings. However, school districts should be cautious about the health and safety aspects relating to overhead transmission lines. School districts should take a conservative approach when reviewing sites situated near easements for power transmissions lines.

In consultation with the State Department of Health Services (DHS) and electric power companies, the Department has established the following limits for locating any part of a school site property line near the edge of easements for high-voltage power transmission lines:

The Department of Health Services completed a multiyear study of EMFs in schools. Results of the study were published at the end of 2000. The limits noted above for locating school sites near EMF-producing lines may be amended on the basis of the findings of the study.

When evaluating a potential site situated near a power line easement, the site selection team should ask the following questions:

Each site will be evaluated according to its own potential hazards by the Department consultant. (See CCR, Title5, Section 14010(c).)

Presence of Toxic and Hazardous Substances

The presence of potentially toxic or hazardous substances on or in the vicinity of a prospective school site is another concern relating to the safety of students, staff, and the public. Persons responsible for site evaluation should give special consideration to the following hazards:

A summary of the requirements is as follows:

(See Education Code Section 17213(b) and Public Resources Code Section 21151.8(a)(2).)

The LEA shall consult with the administering agency and the local air pollution control district or air quality management district to identify facilities within a quarter mile of the proposed site that might reasonably be anticipated to emit hazardous air emissions or handle hazardous materials, substances, or wastes and shall provide written notification of those findings.

The LEA shall make the finding either that no such facilities were identified or that they do exist but that the health risks do not or will not constitute an actual or potential endangerment of public health at the site or that corrective measures will be taken that will result in emissions mitigation to levels that will not constitute endangerment. In the final instance the LEA should make an additional finding that emissions will have been mitigated before occupancy of the school.

These written findings, as adopted by the LEA governing board, must be submitted to the Department as a part of the site approval package. Often this information is included in the Phase I site assessment and in the adopted California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) document. (See CCR, Title 5, Section 14011(i).)

Other Health Hazards

(See Education Code Section 17213(a) and Public Resources Code Section 21151.8(a)(1); see also CCR, Title 5, Section 14011(h).)

The LEA shall include in an environmental impact report or a negative declaration the information needed to determine that the proposed site is not any of the following type:

1. The site of a current or former hazardous waste disposal site or a solid waste disposal site unless, if the site was a former solid waste disposal site, the LEA governing board concludes that the wastes have been removed.
2. A hazardous substance release site identified by the Department of Health Services (now maintained by DTSC)
3. The site of one or more pipelines, situated underground or aboveground, which carry hazardous substances, materials, or wastes, unless the pipeline is used only to supply natural gas to that school or neighborhood

Other factors to consider are as follows:

• If the proposed land has been designated a border zone property by the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC), then a school may not be located on the site without a specific variance in writing by DTSC. Contact DTSC, Site Mitigation, (916) 255-3745. See Health and Safety Code Section 25220.
• From a nuisance standpoint the site selection committee should also consider whether a site is located near or downwind from a stockyard, fertilizer plant, soil-processing operation, auto dismantling facility, sewage treatment plant, or other potentially hazardous facility.

When evaluating a site near railroad tracks, a study should be conducted to answer the following questions (See CCR, Title 5, Section 14010(d)):

While most railroads have detailed instructions for handling hazardous materials, no setback distance between railroad tracks and schools is defined in law. However, the California Code of Regulations, Title 5, Section 14010(d), established the following regulations pertaining to proximity to railroads:

If the proposed site is within 1,500 feet of a railroad track easement, a safety study shall be done by a competent professional trained in assessing cargo manifests, frequency, speed, and schedule of railroad traffic, grade, curves, type and condition of track, need for sound or safety barriers, need for pedestrian and vehicle safeguards at railroad crossing, presence of high pressure gas lines near the tracks that could rupture in the event of a derailment, preparation of an evacuation plan. In addition to the analysis, possible and reasonable mitigation measures must be identified.

The National Transportation Safety Board has called for a uniform standard separation of at least 100 feet between hazardous materials storage and production facilities and mainline railroad tracks. Hazardous materials authorities have evacuated homes within a radius of 1,500 feet to 2,500 feet of railroad accidents when toxic gas and explosives were involved.

1. California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) (Outside Source)) has three regional offices providing railroad information.

Sacramento (Fresno and counties north)
Contact: Robert (Buzz) Webb
916-327-3131

San Francisco (bay and coastal counties)
Contact: George Elsmore
415-703-2665

Los Angeles (counties south of Fresno)
Contact: Tom Hunt
213-576-7089

2. Operation Life Savers, which provides educational materials regarding railroad safety information:

Federal Railroad Administration
650 Capitol Mall, Room 7007
Sacramento, CA
Contact Al Settje
916-498-6540

4. Refer to Public Utilities Commission General Order No. 161, Rule 4, regarding the ability of local emergency response agencies (fire department or other public agency with responsibility for responding to an emergency) to obtain a list of hazardous materials transported on the rail line in question for the most recent prior twelve-month period. Main line railroads have risk management offices:

Union Pacific (St. Louis)
800-892-1283

Burlington Northern Santa Fe (Fort Worth)
817-234-2350

Amtrak (Oakland)
800-683-4114

Caltrain (San Jose)
408-291-5660

Metrolink (Los Angeles)
909-593-6973

Emergency Response Plan. There are approximately thirty-three short line railroads, not mainline, around the state. School districts should have information about them (e.g. name of rails, owner, operation, location, and dispatch office). In addition, school districts should identify the mile post crossing nearest the school and keep on file with the school's emergency response plan.

Proximity to Pressurized Gas, Gasoline, or Sewer Pipeline

Education Code Section 17213 prohibits the acquisition of a school site by a school district if the site "contains one or more pipelines, situated underground or aboveground, which carries hazardous substances, acutely hazardous materials, or hazardous wastes, unless the pipeline is a natural gas line which is used only to supply natural gas to that school or neighborhood." Public Resources Code Section 21151.8 uses the same language with reference to approval of environmental impact reports or negative declarations. (See CCR, Title 5, Section 14010(h).)

Proximity to High-Pressure Water Pipelines, Reservoirs, Water Storage Tanks

Large, buried pipelines are commonly used for delivery of water. The ground surfaces over these buried pipelines are covered with roadways or green belts or remain undeveloped, and the general public is unaware of their existence. Designs of such pipelines include a wide margin of safety for the operating water pressures within the pipe, but a severe earthquake, damage by an adjacent construction activity, or highly corrosive conditions surrounding soils can contribute to leakage or even failure of the pipe. A sudden rupturing of a high-pressure pipeline can result in the release of a large volume of water at the point of failure and fragments of concrete pipe being hurled throughout the immediate area. Subsequent flooding of the immediate area and along the path of drainage to lower ground levels might occur.

To ensure the protection of students, faculty, and school property if the proposed school site is within 1,500 feet of the easement of an aboveground or underground pipeline that can pose a safety hazard, the school district should obtain the following information from the pipeline owner or operator:

1. The pipeline alignment, size, type of pipe, depth of cover
2. Operating water pressures in pipelines near the proposed school site
3. Estimated volume of water that might be released from the pipeline should a rupture occur on the site
4. Owner's assessment of the structural condition of the pipeline (Periodic reassessment would be appropriate as long as both the pipeline and the school remain operational.)

School districts should determine form topographic maps and in consultation with appropriate local officials the general direction that water released from the pipeline would drain. If site selection must involve such pipelines, districts should seek to (1) avoid or minimize students use of ground surfaces above or in close proximity to the buried pipeline; (2) locate facilities safely or provide safeguards to preclude flooding in the event of a pipeline failure; and (3) prepare and implement emergency response plans for the safety of students and faculty in the event of pipeline failure and flooding.

Proximity to Propane Tanks

A propane tank explosion is known as a boiling liquid evaporative explosion (BLEVE). The school district should address the safety issues of locating a propane tank on or near a school site by answering the following questions:

Once the answers to these questions are established, the district should contact the following state agencies for assistance in evaluating the school's level of safety in the event of explosions and nonexplosive fires:

Noise is unwanted or harmful sound; sound that is too loud is distracting or, worse, injurious.

The loudness of sound is measured in decibels. Each decibel level equates to the amount of acoustical energy necessary to produce that level of sound. The decibel scale is exponential. A person's whisper may be measure at 20 decibels. The sound measured at 30 decibels is ten times as loud as the 20 decibel whisper.

The normal range of conversation is between 34 and 66 decibels. Between 70 and 90 decibels, sound is distracting and presents an obstacle to conversation, thinking, or learning. Above 90 decibels, sound can cause permanent hearing loss. The California Department of Transportation considers sound at 50 decibels in the vicinity of schools to be the point at which it will take corrective action for noise generated by freeways. (See Streets and Highway Code sections 216 and 216.1.)

If the school district is considering a potential school site near a freeway or other source of noise, it should hire an acoustical engineer to determine the level of sound that location is subjected to and to assist in designing the school should that site be chosen. The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASLHA) guidelines recommend that in classrooms sounds dissipate in 0.4 seconds or less (and not reverberate) and that background noise not rise above 30 decibels.

Proximity to Major Roadways

The California Code of Regulations, Title 5, Section 14010(e), states: "The site shall not be adjacent to a road or freeway that any site-related traffic and sound level studies have determined will have safety problems or sound levels which adversely affect the educational program."

Trucks traveling on public roads - including interstate freeways, state highways, and local roads - often contain the same hazardous materials that railcars on railroads contain. Although the quantities of materials being carried on trucks are smaller for a double trailer or tanker in comparison to a railcar, trucks have a greater incidence of accidents, spills, and explosions than do railcars. Moreover, the protective enclosures of a truck are not as strong as are those of a railcar.

When evaluating a site near a major roadway, a school district needs to ask questions similar to those used in evaluating risk from rail lines:

County road departments are also a good source for traffic flow and accident information in the local area. The school district may wish to consult the city or county general plan "Noise Element" to help evacuate school sites near major roadways.

Like railroad setbacks, highway setbacks from schools are not established in law. However, experience and practice indicate that distances of at least 2,500 feet are advisable when explosives are carried and at least 1,500 feet when gasoline, diesel, propane, chlorine, oxygen, pesticides, and other combustible or poisonous gases are transported. In the absence of specific, legally defined setback distances for schools, the Department reviews each case individually.

Results of Geological Studies and Soils Analysis

Education Code sections 17212 and 17212.5 require that a geological study and a soils analyses provide an assessment of the potential for earthquake or other geological hazard damage if the prospective school site is located (1) within the boundaries of any Alquist-Priolo special studies zone; or (2) within an area designated as geologically hazardous in the safety element of the local general plan, as provided in Government Code Section 65302(g). Because California is seismically active and new faults are being discovered, Department policy is that all proposed school sites have geological studies and soils analyses completed.

Any geological study must be conducted according to provisions contained in Education Code Section 17212.5, which states that "no school building shall be constructed, reconstructed, or relocated on the trace of a geological fault along which surface rupture can be reasonably expected to occur within the life of the school building." (See CCR, Title 5, Section 14011(g)).

Earthquakes, Liquefaction, and Landslides. Alquist-Priolo Earthquake Fault Zone maps delineate active fault lines and earthquake fault zone boundaries (previously known as Special Study Zones). For further information on these maps, contact the California Department of Conservation (CDC), Division of Mines and Geology (DMG) (Outside Source), at (916) 323-9672. These maps are important because the California Code of Regulations, Title 5, Section 14010(f), specifies that new school sites may not contain an active earthquake fault or fault trace.

School districts may also wish to refer to Seismic Hazard Zone maps, also prepared by CDC, which address the hazards of liquefaction and earthquake induced landslides. For further information, contacts DMG (Outside Source) or at (916) 323-8569. These maps are important because the California Code of Regulations, Title 5, Section 14010(i), requires that new school sites not be subject to moderate-to-high liquefaction or landslides.

Copies of either of these types of hazard maps for specific communities may be purchased from BPS Reprographic Services, 149 Second Street, San Francisco, CA 94105; 415-512-6550.

The California Building Code contains descriptions of areas in the state that are divided into seismic zones III or IV. These zone designations will affect the structural safety design requirements of the Division of the State Architect. Eventually, these zone designations may be affected if a new code is adopted.

Areas Subject to Flooding and Inundation. The California Code of Regulations (CCR), Title 5, Section 14010(g), requires that new school sites are not to be within an area of flood or dam inundation unless the cost of mitigating the impact is reasonable. The overflowing or failure of nearby rivers, streams, dams, levees, detention/retention basins, flood control channels, water supply aqueducts, irrigation canals, and areas subject to flash flooding and surface runoff is cause for concern. Potential damage may be mitigated by elevating the site above flood levels, creating or improving the levees and drainage infrastructure, and establishing emergency notification and evacuation procedures. As a condition of final site approval, the Department consultant may require a hydrologic study or other means of confirmation that the site will not be subject to flooding or a report of proposed mitigation measures, including estimated costs, or both.

The district should consult the local city or county general plan, responsible flood control agencies, and Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRM), which are available from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). These official maps delineate flood hazard areas, such as the 100-year flood plan. Copies of flood maps are available for a nominal fee. Contact the following agency for a copy of the current flood map for a specific community: Map Service Center (MSC) (Outside Source), P.O. Box 1038, Jessup, MD 20794-1038; 800-358-9616.

The Governor's Office of Emergency Services (OES) publishes maps that provide the best estimate of where water would flow if dams were to experience failure. For further information contact OES (Outside Source).

See Appendix H for factors to be included in geological hazard reports.

Traffic and School Bus Safety Conditions

The school facility should be situated so that students can enter and depart the buildings and grounds safely. As the number of schools providing child care and extended day classes increases, schools need to ensure the safe flow of buses and other traffic through designated areas of the school grounds. When analyzing potential school sites, the selection team should consider a number of safety factors. The size and shape of the site will affect the traffic flow and the placement of pickup and drop-off points for parents.

When designing pickup and drop-off points, the team should remember that the separation of bus traffic from all other traffic is of paramount importance. Roads servicing the area must be of sufficient paved width when the point at which the bus loads and unloads pupils is off the main thoroughfare. The need for left turn lanes must be determined. Driveway openings must conform to local ordinances or regulations. When analyzing potential school sites for traffic and bus safety, site selection teams should use the evaluation checklist contained in Appendix B. Department consultants can help in evaluating issues of ingress and egress.

Safe Routes to School

The national Walk Our Children to School Day was established in 1997 by the Partnership for a Walkable America, a national alliance of public and private organizations committed to making walking safer. Because the physical environment greatly affects how many residents can and will walk, a Walkability Checklist is provided in Appendix J. It is an excerpt from the National Safety Council's (Outside Source) checklist. A growing number of communities are implementing measures to make their environments safer for walking.

The Department recommends that the site selection committee walk the area surrounding each proposed school site. If there are unsatisfactory walking routes for a proposed site, the school district should consider another site or work with the city or county to have safe walking routes installed before opening the school.

Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) funds may be available to help make school access safer for pedestrians and cyclists. Assembly Bill 1475 (Chapter 663, Statutes of 1999) directs FHWA safety funds to a new program entitled Safe Routes to Schools. This program will sunset January 1, 2005.

The California Department of Transportation (DOT) has the responsibility to distribute the Safe Routes to Schools program guidelines. Additional information may be obtained at the following:

California Department of Transportation (Outside Source)
Caltrans Division of Local Assistance (Outside Source)
California Department of Transportation, Traffic Operations (Outside Source)

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Hesperia Weather Forecast, CA (92345)