Have Questions About Lead In Pipes? City To Discuss Water Quality Next Week In Our Area

As concern about water quality spreads from Flint, Michigan to Newark, some residents have asked about the extent of the risk posed by lead pipes in our area.

You can speak directly with the City’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), which manages our water supply, at their presentation on water quality next week at Community Board 14.

Regarded as one of the finest municipal water supply systems on the planet, the New York City system provides over a billion gallons of water daily to nine million metro area residents. The water comes from a series of upstate reservoirs, as much as 125 miles north of New York City.

The DEP has been conducting a public information campaign about possible lead exposure through corrosion of lead plumbing in houses and apartment buildings. The City will send a free lead testing kit to any resident concerned about lead levels.

New York City water is “virtually lead-free,” when it arrives from upstate reservoirs, the City says, but “lead from solder, fixtures, and pipes found in the plumbing of some older buildings and homes can get into water. Lead levels can increase when water sits in pipes and faucets for several hours.”

Lead service lines have not been installed in New York City since 1961, and the use of lead in plumbing systems was banned in 1987, the DEP notes.

The DEP states that they make an active effort to reduce the amount of lead that dissolves into the city’s tap water from lead pipes and fixtures:

“DEP carefully and continuously monitors and adjusts pH levels of water to a specific range that reduces the corrosiveness of the water. DEP also adds phosphoric acid—a common food preservative—to create a protective film on pipes that reduces the release of metals, such as lead, from household plumbing. Since these treatments were started, the levels of lead in tap water have been going down.”

The City will make its presentation on water quality at CB 14’s Community Environment committee meeting, to be held next Tuesday (3/22) at 7pm at the board’s office — 810 East 16th Street (and Avenue H).

The Prospect Park Zoo and Prospect Park Alliance will also be making presentations at next Tuesday’s committee meeting.