The DNT’s very reasonable editorial on mulch…

that I will not abide by. It begins:

Now that estimates have come back at more than triple the originally talked-about cost, can the Duluth School Board please do right by taxpayers and take a step back on replacing rubber mulch on school playgrounds — at least until the science is there to tell us if the stuff is even a problem?

I may vote to put the mulch plan up for rebidding. Or, I may consider another parent driven plan that promises to be closer to the original estimated price and that might mean a one-year installation of all ten playgrounds.

So, its too early to follow the Tribune’s advice. And even if all we can do is accept one of the current bids I won’t rule out accepting it. That is for a couple reasons. First, the money will not come out of classroom money (General Fund). Second, This is an issue that due to the perception of stonewalling was greatly heightened parental unhappiness, Third, Its hard to ignore the question posed to me by a chemist “What if years from now you learn it was toxic and you let kids play on it for several years?”

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