U. S. Environmental Protection Agency's second version of a free software tool that helps school districts evaluate and manage their school facilities for key environmental, safety, and health issues. HealthySEAT is designed to be customized and used by district-level staff to conduct voluntary self-assessments of their school facilities and to track and manage information on environmental conditions school by school. EPA has also included critical elements of all of its regulatory and voluntary programs for schools, as well as web links to more detailed information. Enhancements for Version 2 include user-defined custom checklists, custom notification letters, additional and updated reports and forms, new navigation improvements, e-mail functionality, changes in terminology, and additional documentation.

These web pages are intended to serve as a gateway to on-line resources to help facility managers, school administrators, architects, design engineers, school nurses, parents, teachers and staff address environmental health issues in schools. Topics covered include chemical use and management; design, construction, and renovation; energy efficiency; facility operations and maintenance; indoor environmental quality; legislation and regulation; outdoor air pollution; portable classrooms; safety/preparedness; waste; and waste reduction.

Offers guidance on renovations of buildings with pre-1978 paint, which may contain lead. Through inexpensive materials and lead-safe renovation techniques, historic buildings can be made lead safe while preserving their architectural features. New federal requirements for contractor requirements concerning lead-based paint abatement are also addressed.

Discusses the continuing hazard of lead poisoning, in spite of significant headway that has been made over the past 50 years. The effect of lead on humans, lead in paint and soils, and climatic factors are addressed. At particular risk are poor people who inhabit the polluted centers of our older cities. "Capping" lead-contaminated soil with lead-free soil or soil amendment appears to be a simple and cost-effective way to reduce the lead load for urban youth. Includes 26 references.