Because of recent awareness of lead pipes and lead water contamination across the United States, especially in Flint, Michigan, it’s no surprise that the EPA is revising the rules for lead and copper. As a building manager in Chicago, you’ll want to be up-to-date on the changes so that you can make the best decision when it comes to ensuring the safety of your resident’s drinking water.
EPA Lead and Copper Rule
The EPA started regulating lead and copper potable water pipes in 1991. Since then, there have been numerous minor and major revisions to the Lead and Copper Rule (LCR). The initial rule mandated that lead and copper cannot exceed a certain number of parts per billion in 10 percent of sampled taps. Specifically, copper cannot exceed 15ppb, and lead cannot exceed 1.3ppb. If the levels tested exceed those numbers, customers and municipalities must take steps to correct the contamination.
The Flint Water Crisis and the EPA’s Lead Copper Rule
It is well-known that pipe corrosion causes lead and copper contamination in drinking water, and the chemical composition of the water can directly affect how fast the pipes corrode. Unfortunately, Flint, Michigan, received a swift lesson on water composition and pipe corrosion when it switched from the non-acidic water from Lake Huron to the acidic and polluted water in the Flint River. The acidity caused by the pollution in the Flint River combined with poor water treatment practices hastened the deterioration of the city's lead pipes. The crisis and subsequent news coverage prompted the EPA to start revising its Lead and Copper Rule in hopes of avoiding similar catastrophes in the future.
Proposed Revisions to the Lead Copper Rule
Changes to the Lead and Copper Rule were proposed on November 18, 2015, by Rep. Kildee, a democrat in Michigan. Water Online’s article on the lead and copper revisions proposed by the EPA provides a detailed explanation of the changes and a diagram of the steps to be taken when it comes to testing, reporting and correcting lead and copper water pollution. In general, water treatment plants and municipalities must monitor and maintain lead and copper levels that are at or below the EPA’s recommended guidelines.
- The municipalities must educate the public on the dangers of lead and copper contamination.
- The municipalities and water treatment plants must determine if the city or town has lead or copper pipes.
- They must test both the water at the treatment plant and the water at the taps in order to effectively monitor lead and copper levels.
- They must add the appropriate amount of corrosion control chemicals into the water to prevent metal pipe corrosion.
- They must carry out testing to determine if the water is acidic and take the needed steps to correct acidic water.
- If unsafe levels of copper or lead are found customers and the city must be notified.
Fixing Corrosion and Lead and Copper Contamination with Nu Flow
There are two ways to fix lead pipe contamination. You can remove all of the lead pipes and any copper pipes that are sealed with lead solder and replace them with PVC or PEX, or you can have the pipes lined. Our pipe lining experts generally recommend having your pipes lined because it is far less invasive and doesn’t stir up sediment or the disturb the other lead pipes that may be on owned by the municipality, which may temporarily increase the lead particles for several months after the pipe replacement.
At Nu Flow, our pipe lining experts can examine your metal pipes and determine if you would benefit from lining your pipes. A pipe liner or epoxy coating completely covers the inside walls of your pipes, which prevents water from coming into contact with your metal plumbing pipes. This removes the possibility of lead leaching into your potable water and eliminates further corrosion, extending the useful life of your potable water pipes.
To learn more about how pipe liners and pipe coating can prevent lead and copper contamination in your drinking water, call us at 815-790-9000.
