How to Participate:

  1. Have your site screened.
  2. Complete environmental testing as needed.

Choose Safe Places Site Screening

Children and adults at childcare centers may unknowingly be exposed to harmful chemicals. By using our site screening process, childcare providers can proactively identify potential problems in their centers. The MT Choose Safe Places Program encourages all current and future childcare providers to have their sites screened.

Site screenings are nonregulatory and do not require program staff to visit the childcare center physically.

How are site screenings conducted?

There are two ways childcare providers may conduct a site screening:

1. Request a formal site assessment

  • Childcare providers can request a site assessment from DPHHS based on available public records.
  • Before you fill out a request form, please review the list of questions you need to answer. Once you are ready with the information requested, please submit your request.
  • MT Choose Safe Places Staff will consider the following for the assessment:
    • Are there nearby properties that may contain or use hazardous chemicals?
    • Are there naturally occurring hazards like radon?
    • Is the source of drinking water safe? Has the water been tested?
  • The daycare facility will receive a private letter showing the results of the assessment and any follow-up suggestions by program staff. Participants will also receive a certificate of participation in the program which can be proudly displayed to parents and staff.

2. Conduct a self-evaluation of the property using the checklist provided by the MT Choose Safe Places Program.

  • Childcare providers can assess their properties using this self-evaluation checklist. The checklist is a useful tool for those who choose to not request a formal assessment through DPHHS.
  • The checklist can be accessed at MT Choose Safe Places Self-evaluation Checklist.
  • This self-evaluation tool allows you to conduct a preliminary site screening on your own.
  • If you are interested in requesting DPHHS's expertise to accurately assess the potential environmental hazards you may have identified in your checklist, have concerns about your screening results, or have questions about the self-evaluation form, please contact us at choosesafeplacesMT@mt.gov.

 

Environmental Screening

The Montana Choose Safe Places currently offers the following environmental testing program to childcare programs that have requested a formal site screening OR conducted a self-evaluation of their property using the Montana Choose Safe Place’s checklist.

The Choose Safe Places Team will keep all test results confidential. Test results will only be used for internal review and shared with the childcare provider who requested the test.

Please contact the Montana Choose Safe Places Team at ChooseSafePlacesMT@mt.gov and Emma.Whitehead@mt.gov if you are interested in the environmental screening below. 

Overview

  • Private wells in Montana may contain harmful substances such as arsenic, fluoride, uranium, manganese, nitrates, pesticides, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and bacteria. If you have not had your well water tested beyond the basics, we encourage you to request well water testing.

Process

  • The childcare provider completes a short online survey form about their site
  • The State Environmental Lab mails the childcare provider a test kit
  • The childcare provider receives the test kit and follows the instructions to collect water samples and return their samples
  • The State Environmental Lab tests the childcare provider’s well water and provides test results to the Choose Safe Places Program Team
  • The Choose Safe Places Team communicates results to the childcare provider.

Costs

  • There are no costs for having your well water tested.

Overview

  • Radon is an odorless radioactive gas. Radon has been identified as the second leading cause of lung cancer in the US. The only way to know how much radon is present is to test your indoor air.
  • The Choose Safe Places Program encourages childcare providers to have their radon levels tested in the fall or winter

Process

  • The Choose Safe Places Team mails the childcare provider a radon test
  • The childcare provider receives the test, completes the test, and mails the sample according to the instructions
  • The childcare provider receives test results from the radon testing company.

Costs

  • There are no costs for radon testing

Overview

  • Lead is toxic and can cause permanent damage in children. However, lead poisoning is preventable. Homes and buildings built before 1978 may contain lead-based paint, which can become leaded dust over time from peeling and chipped paint. Children and staff can come into contact with lead by breathing in or ingesting leaded dust on floors or in soil.
  • Testing painted surfaces and soil is the only way to know if they contain lead.

Process

  • The Choose Safe Places Team mails the childcare provider a painted surfaces test kit for lead
  • The childcare provider receives the test kit, completes tests according to the instructions, and sees results in minutes.

Costs

  • There are no costs for painted surface tests for lead.

Overview

  • Lead is toxic and can cause permanent damage in children. However, lead poisoning is preventable. Homes and buildings built before 1978 may contain lead-based paint, which can contaminate the soil around the facility. Children and staff can come into contact with lead by ingesting lead-contaminated soil. Testing the soil is the only way to know if it contains lead.

 Process

  • The childcare provider collects their soil following instructions provided by the Choose Safe Places team and mails or drops off their soil sample(s) to the Choose Safe Places team in Helena
  • The Choose Safe Places team tests the soil sample(s) and relays the results back to the childcare provider.

 Costs

  • The childcare provider will pay to mail or drop off their soil sample.