Eliminating Lead From Drinking Water Is a Must. The Question Is How

• Pages: 54-55

54 | THE ENVIRONMENTAL FORUM Reprinted by permission from The Environmental Forum®, November/December 2021.

Copyright © 2021, Environmental Law Institute®, Washington, D.C. www.eli.org.

THE DEBATE

Eliminating Lead From Drinking Water

Is a Must. he Question Is How

President Biden aims to replace all lead

service lines in the United States — a

long overdue undertaking to resolve a

legacy of contamination. His initial Ameri-

can Jobs Plan set out to replace all lead lines

within 10 years, with an estimated price tag

of $45 billion. If enacted, pending infrastruc-

ture legislation would provide a down pay-

ment of $15 billion for the effort.

According to the White House, lead pipes

run through an estimated 6 to 10 million

homes, plus another 400,000 schools and

child care centers. Lead exposure impairs

neural development in young children and

causes greater risk of kidney failure, stroke,

and other health conditions. Disproportion-

ately affecting low-income neighborhoods

and communities of color, lead poses both a

major public health risk and environmental

justice issue.

Although replacement of lead service

lines receives bipartisan support, upgrading

the country’s aging infrastructure is no easy

feat. A lack of data and mapping of old lines

means we may not always know exactly how

many lead pipes there are — and how much

replacing all of them will cost. Furthermore,

public water service lines only extend to the

edge of private properties, meaning many

homeowners own, and are responsible for,

a portion of these lead pipes.

Navigating this complex web of policy, in-

frastructure, and funding will require collab-

oration between all affected stakeholders:

governments, water utilities, households,

and more. We ask experts from a range of

backgrounds to consider: what is the best

way to rapidly replace the country’s lead

service lines? What should achieving 100

percent replacement look like in terms of

strategy, timing, and the amount and struc-

ture of funding? And in achieving all of this,

how can we ensure that the people most at

risk are prioritized?