close
close

City officials will notify residents of Rochester, New York about leading water lines

Posted on by L. Dreeye
City officials will notify residents of Rochester, New York about leading water lines

play

Mayor Malik Evans announced last week that the city has submitted a list of major water lines to the New York State Department of Health. The city will begin notifying customers if their city lines contain lead or an unknown material.

Residents will receive a letter with information about when service lines on their street are scheduled to be replaced and how to minimize lead in their drinking water. Lead in the water children drink can cause serious lifelong health consequences for them.

The devastating effects of lead in public drinking water

Children under 6 years of age are especially at risk for lead poisoning, in part because they put toys, hands, or other objects in their mouths. They are also at risk because their bodies absorb more lead—a neurotoxin that occurs naturally on Earth—than the bodies of adults. Eduardo Cuevas recently reported for USA TODAY that children with iron deficiency, which is more common in babies born prematurely or at low birth weight, absorb lead even faster.

Lead in any amount can cause a variety of health problems in children, whether they inhale it or ingest it. Very high levels of lead can cause seizures, coma and death. Low levels can cause behavioral problems, loss of IQ and attention deficit disorder, as well as growth retardation and hearing or speech impairment.

Neurotoxin in water: mayor says city doesn’t want to disturb people

Mayor Evans said the purpose of the announcements is to inform, not alarm, residents about the presence of lead pipes in the nearly 150-year-old water system.

“We have made tremendous progress in removing all lead water lines,” Mayor Evans said in a press release. “In doing so, we provide residents with the information they need to ensure their drinking water is as healthy and safe as possible.”

The water line inventory and notifications are part of the city’s Get the Lead Out Together program, a plan to remove all water lines containing lead by 2030.

The City has replaced more than 8,100 lead lines and is on track to remove nearly 3,000 lead lines per year with more than $100 million in funding from the American Rescue Plan Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill. The City also receives support from the New York State Department of Health and the New York State Environmental Protection Corporation.

More information about the program can be found on the website www. cityofrochester.gov/lead. Residents can also review their water line materials and get updated information on lead water line replacement projects.

When will notifications be sent and who will receive them?

The city’s water bureau will begin mailing notices by November 1st.

About 13,000 consumer water lines were found to contain lead. About 3,300 customers have water lines containing galvanized steel, formerly part of the leading service, and another 17,000 customers whose water lines are made of an unknown material.

Customers whose service lines are made from materials that do not pose a risk of lead exposure, such as copper or plastic, will not receive notification.

— Kerrya Weaver works as a government and you reporter for the Democrat and Chronicle, focusing on how government actions impact communities and neighborhoods in Rochester and Monroe County. Contact us at [email protected]..

— USA TODAY contributed information to this report.