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    • Stark County water customers warned of possible lead water pipes
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    Stark County water customers warned of possible lead water pipes

    Umito Posted on

    Stark County water officials are warning thousands of customers that they may have water lines that may need to be replaced due to new rules on drinking water.

    Customers whose water service lines are made of lead, galvanized steel that may have been exposed to lead, or a material unknown to the water supplier will receive a letter from their supplier by November 15. Customers whose service lines are made of lead-free materials. materials, such as copper or plastic, will not receive a letter.

    The water main is the smaller pipe that brings water from the large water main to the house or building.

    The United States Environmental Protection Agency requires these letters to be sent annually to inform the customer of the pipe material their water supplier has registered for their property and that the pipe may contain lead.

    The letters also provide tips for limiting possible exposure to lead, which was banned in 1988 as a material used in water pipes. Exposure to lead in drinking water can cause learning and behavior problems, anemia, and stunted growth in children and can increase the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, and other problems. kidney or nervous system in adults.

    Customers are not required to take action now, as the letters are intended for notification and regulatory purposes. But a new federal regulation will require water pipes made of lead, galvanized steel and unknown materials to be replaced within 13 years.

    Customers are typically responsible for replacing service lines, but several area water providers are seeking grants and other funding to cover the costs.

    Stark County has about 200 public water system operators, including restaurants, churches and apartment buildings with their own systems.

    The Canton Repository reached out to Stark County’s four largest public water providers – Canton City, Aqua Ohio, North Canton and Alliance – to better understand what the notification letters and possible replacement requirement could mean for them. residents.

    Here are three things to know:

    1. Water suppliers are required to carry out an inventory of pipes and make the results public

    The notification letters follow a required inventory of water lines that was due to the state on Oct. 16.

    Public water system officials used historical records, service records and customer surveys to identify the composition of water pipes, the ownership of which is often shared. The supplier generally owns the pipe running from the water main to the street sidewalk and the customer owns the portion of the pipe running from the sidewalk to their home or building.

    Dina Pierce, public information officer for the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, said the state agency is still reviewing inventory submissions and a summary county by county was not yet available. Each water supplier must make the results of its inventory public. The Canton Water Department, which serves 27,635 township customers and 15,240 out-of-town customers in areas including Hartville, East Canton, Beach City and Osnaburg, Lake, Plain and Canton townships, has created a map in line that shows the hardware status of each service. line to cantonohio.gov/2273/Lead-Awareness.

    Canton, Aqua Ohio, which serves about 40,000 customers in the Massillon area and about 100 customers in North Canton, and the North Canton Water Department, which serves 9,201 customers, found no lead service lines .

    Alliance, which serves nearly 10,000 customers, has identified 1,666 customers with lead service lines and is working to replace those lines. since 2021.

    2. Receiving a letter does not mean you have lead in your drinking water

    Most of the notification letters are being sent to Stark County because water officials have not been able to confirm the material of the pipe and therefore cannot rule out the possibility of lead. In some cases, the customer can opt out of the notification list by identifying the pipe material entering their home and reporting it to the water supplier.

    Similarly, letters to customers with galvanized steel pipes are sent because water authorities cannot prove that there never was a lead pipe upstream. The EPA has said that galvanized service lines can capture lead released from upstream lead service lines and that over time the particles could enter drinking water.

    Local water officials stressed that they conduct routine testing to ensure lead levels remain below federal standards.

    Canton Water Superintendent Tyler Converse said Canton’s water source, made up of three aquifers, does not contain lead and does not have the corrosive water chemistry that causes leaching , which also reduces the risk of lead exposure.

    “Over the last 30 years that we have been doing compliance monitoring, sampling and testing, we have not exceeded action levels and we have 30 years of data to support that,” Converse said .

    See for yourself: Cantonal water quality reports

    Canton will send notification letters to 4,865 customers who have unknown material pipes and 3,223 customers who have galvanized water pipes.

    Aqua Ohio sent its notification letters last month to 11,393 Stark County customers with unknown material pipes and 1,119 Stark County customers with galvanized steel pipes.

    North Canton sends 2,378 letters to customers whose service lines are made with an unknown material. It has no customers with galvanized lines.

    In addition to the letters Alliance is sending to customers with lead pipes, the city is also sending letters to 3,156 customers whose galvanized steel pipes will need to be replaced. Alliance has no unknown material lines.

    3. New federal rules require replacement of lead and potentially lead water pipes.

    Customers receiving a notification letter are not advised to take any action at this time. But the new federal rules, which were released October 8require water suppliers to replace all service lines made of lead, galvanized steel requiring replacement, and unknown materials by 2037.

    Jeff La Rue, a spokesman for Aqua Ohio, said the water provider plans to replace its galvanized and unknown materials service lines within five years. He said Aqua Ohio, which serves about 500,000 residents in 19 Ohio counties, has worked with the EPA to identify funds it can use to replace service lines at no cost to the customer. Generally, replacing a service line from the sidewalk to a home is the customer’s responsibility.

    Township and northern water officials continue to review potential funding and potential legal issues related to replacing identified service lines in their distribution systems. Canton said the replacement could cost as much as $19 million, not including money for line identification and annual notifications.

    Alliance Safety Services Director Mike Dreger said Alliance received two $1 million grants to fund the replacement of lead service lines. The work is expected to be completed by mid-2025. The city then plans to apply for a 50 percent grant to replace other service lines, he said.

    Contact Canton Repository editor Kelli Weir at 330-580-8339 or [email protected].

    Tips to Reduce Your Exposure to Lead in Drinking Water

    • Flush your faucet if it has not been used for six hours or more to remove any lead that may have built up over time. Service lines should be flushed until you notice a change in temperature, then flushed for an additional minute.

    • Use cold water for cooking, drinking, and making formula because lead dissolves more easily in hot water. If necessary, use cold tap water and then heat it. Boiling water will not reduce lead.

    • Use an ANSI/NSF 53 certified lead filter to reduce lead levels in water.

    • Clean your faucet aerators regularly to remove any lead-containing particles that may have accumulated inside the aerator screens.

    • Take extra precautions for pregnant people, infants, and young children, such as having drinking water tested for lead, using bottled water or another alternative water source, or using a filter to remove lead. lead.

    • Replace lead-containing plumbing fixtures, such as old faucets and valves.

    • Have your child’s blood tested for lead at your local health department.

    • Ask your water supplier if they offer free water testing.

    Source: Notification letters from the Canton Water Department

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