The Wisconsin Department of Public Works (DiPoSiV) Plan for the Replace of Lead Pipes by 2020 for Safe Drinking Water
WASHINGTON — A decade after the Flint, Michigan, water crisis raised alarms about the continuing dangers of lead in tap water, President Joe Biden on Tuesday set a 10-year deadline for cities across the nation to replace their lead pipes, finalizing an aggressive approach aimed at ensuring that drinking water is safe for all Americans.
Today, President Joe Biden is going to Milwaukee, Wisconsin to promote the drinking water rule and funding announcement. The EPA has changed the time it gives for the replacement of lead pipes, so the city now has to replace them in a decade. It received $30 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law this year to replace some 3,400 lead service lines, according to the EPA.
There isn’t a safe level of lead exposure. Lead exposure raises the risk of heart disease, cancer, and other health issues in adults. Being exposed to lead can also affect brain development in children, potentially lowering IQ and leading to behavioral changes like difficulty concentrating. People can store lead in their bodies so there is a chance that a fetus may be exposed to the toxic metal.
The action the EPA took today is a step forward in protecting the health of tens of millions of Americans, said a health and food expert.
“What’s the point of having a government if it can’t protect public health?” Biden asked a crowd of union members at a cavernous Department of Public Works warehouse in Milwaukee. The city has the fifth-highest number of lead pipes in the nation, according to the EPA.
“We’re finally addressing an issue that should’ve been addressed a long time ago in this country,” he said. We are going to help get the job done.
Biden Sets 10-Year Deadline for U.S. Cities to Replace Lead Pipes Nationwide During the Preparation for the EPA Clean Water Rule
The EPA estimates that the stricter standard would prevent hundreds of thousands of infants from having low birthweight and early deaths from heart disease.
To help communities comply, the agency is making available an additional $2.6 billion for drinking water infrastructure through the bipartisan infrastructure law. The agency also is awarding $35 million in competitive grants for programs to reduce lead in drinking water.
Water utilities will have plenty of time to prepare for the 10-year period because it won’t begin for three years. A number of cities with large volumes of lead pipes may not be able to meet the new standard in time.
The EPA rule is criticized by fifteen Republican attorneys general, including Kris Koasek of Kansas. Congress did not authorize a requirement that some homeowners would have to pay to replace pipe sections underneath their homes, according to GOP officials. Federal grants worth billions of dollars will help communities replace their pipes, the EPA said, but cost decisions ultimately are up to local utilities.
The costs of the rule far outweigh the benefits, according to Regan. “We believe we’ve done it in a very strategic way — a legally sound way — supported by the science,” he said.
Source: Biden sets 10-year deadline for U.S. cities to replace lead pipes nationwide
Finding the Lead Pipes is a Hidden Problem for City Engineers, Replacing Them with Energy Sources, and Removing Dumping Materials
The lead pipes are a hurdle. Initial pipe inventories are due this month, and many cities have said they don’t know what substances their pipes are made of. Without knowing their location, it is hard to efficiently replace them, according to Eric Schwartz, co-founder of BlueConduit, a company formed in response to the Flint crisis that helps cities find their lead pipes.
