Poolesville High School is a whole-school magnet high school in Montgomery County, Maryland. It has been under construction since the middle of the 2021-2022 school year and is expected to complete by 2024 or 2025. This construction at Poolesville has brought various health concerns for students and staff from the beginning.

  The front of the school was demolished shortly after winter break of the 2021-2022 school year. The new construction immediately caused potential health issues for the students: as students walked outside between the main building and the science building, the wind would blow dust into their eyes. There were few complaints, but it was still extremely uncomfortable for students. Luckily, as the construction progressed, the construction sites became less dusty, although sometimes the air in front of the science building can feel slightly dusty when it's windy out.

  The construction continued into the 2022-2023 school year as planned, and students began experiencing even more health and safety-related issues due to it. On February 14, 2023, roof tarring began. The entire campus smelled like "burning tires" and "natural gas", especially in the Global Hallway/Engineering Room, Senior Bench, and the Auditorium/Music area, according to students. Some students even called 911 because they thought it was a gas leak. Staff and students experienced headaches and nausea, along with a general difficulty to learn, in that environment. Students left school early and skipped class because of how bad it smelled. More than fifteen people were called down to the office during 4th period and lunch to get picked up by their parents because of the health issues the smell was causing. After numerous complaints from students, parents, and staff, the school was dismissed at 1:00. After this, messages about the tarring from the school were sent out, many of which underestimated the symptoms students were describing and denied both the short-term and long-term health issues that the tar fumes posed. The smell at Poolesville's campus became less strong after that, although it still smells outside and in some areas so students are exposed to the fumes in between classes and when near the auditorium. On March 7, the fumes became stronger again, with many students not attending classes not because they didn't want to go, but because they were feeling sick or couldn't learn in such an environment. This time the fumes came from a tar truck that was beside the school, which demonstrates that the presence of tar on Poolesville's campus is the issue. This tarring was expected to continue until Memorial Day, although some anticipate it to continue throughout the next school year. Although the administration has claimed that these tar fumes are not a threat to health and safety, according to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration Agency, the chemicals in the tar can cause respiratory and gastrointestinal issues, along with having a potential risk of causing cancer. Efforts to mitigate the odors at Poolesville have not been particularly effective- even after letters were sent about the air filters and changes in the type of tar used, students didn't notice much of a difference in odor.

  Although bringing all construction to a halt is unrealistic (as the school still needs to be completed), keeping all tar away from school grounds when students are in the building and altering the tarring schedule may be more realistic actions taken to alleviate some of the health and safety issues caused by construction. Another solution, which would be more drastic but effective in protecting health and safety, would be to relocate students and staff to another location until hazardous construction processes (such as removing asbestos and tarring the roof) have been completed. This may even speed up the construction process. 

  The school has paused tarring processes during the school day, which has helped tremendously with the odors (although they are still there). Because the school believes that the complaints are only coming from a minority of students and parents, tarring during the school day is scheduled to resume after spring break. Clearly, articles being published by major media outlets, students leaving early, and parents making repeated complaints aren't enough for people to realize how big of an issue this is. Perhaps through this petition, concerned PHS students can convey the urgency to stop tarring during school/activity hours and explore alternative approaches to complete construction without risking health and safety. 

Letter from the Co-director of the Mid-Atlantic Center for Children’s Health and the Environment about the fumes at Poolesville