The air around St. Helens Elementary School appears much safer than a national newspaper report suggested last December, according to a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency study released Thursday.

Preliminary test results from three air samples taken at the school since August found toxins at tiny fractions of the level considered harmful to humans.

More tests are under way at St. Helens, and a final report is expected late this year or early in 2010, said Suzanne Skadowski, a spokeswoman for the EPA.

The final report will evaluate whether long-term health risks exist at the school, though that is doubtful given the low toxin levels detected so far, she said.

“But we don’t want to make a prediction about that until the study is finished,” she said.

St. Helens Principal Mary Ann Robbins said she was “thankful” to hear the EPA test results. Pollution surrounding the school isn’t something “we can do a whole lot about.”

“I hope it’s something the industries are taking note of and hopefully being proactive for the health concerns of everyone in the community,” Robbins said.

The EPA launched a nationwide study in April following a report published by USA Today last winter that listed St. Helens as among the worst 5 percent schools nationally for air quality.

St. Helens is one of 62 schools across the nation selected by EPA to test air quality because of the school’s close proximity to an industrial site.

It appears the USA Today report used a mathematical formula to determine the amount of toxins released “at the smokestack” by an industry, Skadowski said.

Other factors — such as climate and wind patterns — weren’t factored into the process, which likely skewed the results, she said.

EPA data samples were taken from a machine placed on St. Helens school’s roof. It was programmed to detect metals and other pollutants most likely to come out of nearby industrial plants.

Long-term effects of certain metals such as lead and mercury are known to impair the mental development in children if exposure is high enough. Other toxins, such as formaldehyde, can cause cancer over long periods of time if exposure is high enough, Skadowski said.

Toxin                         Safe level                       St. Helens tests

Acetaldehyde           90*                                    0.72 to 1.5

Antimony                   2000**                              0.11

Arsenic                      150**                                0.28 to 0.59

Cadmium                  30**                                  0.03 to 0.05

Formaldehyde          50*                                   1.3 to 1.7

Manganese               500**                               1.4 to 2.46

Mercury                      3000**                             None detected

Nickel                         200**                               0.006 to 0.65

* Measured in micrograms per cubic meter

** Measured in nanograms per cubic meter

Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency