EPA to test air near Gary school for toxins

August 12, 2009 Beginning August 23, the EPA will take air samples over a 60-day period around Jefferson Elementary School. They will look for metal particles, volatile organic compounds and other toxins which have been shown to cause cancer if breathed over long periods of time.

Results of the testing will be posted on the EPA's website.

A study by a newspaper last year found high levels of manganese in the air around the school and tied it to steel mills in nearby East Chicago.

The EPA will conduct similar tests at Abraham Lincoln Elementary in East Chicago and at 61 other schools in 22 states.