Protecting Kids from Lead: 10 Reasons to be Thankful
There have been many wins in 2024, and we are excited to review them.
Tag: water
Lead in Water: American Water Maps 1.2 Million Service Lines in 11 States
This tool will help millions of customers, homeowners, and potential buyers and renters. However, it is one pixel in a much larger picture of lead in homes.
Lead in Water: BlueConduit Maps Potential LSLs
Predictive modeling provides estimate of LSLs for each utility and can be a platform to provide information on each home.
Finding Lead-Sheathed Telecom Cables that Contaminate Your Neighborhood
Oregon State University researcher spotlights environmental contamination of obsolete telecom cables. That should spur regulators and legislators to act! You can act, too!
Lead in Water: Indiana Allows Utilities to Replace LSLs without Landlord’s OK
Indiana’s legislature unanimously passed SEA-5 in March 2024, establishing steps by which drinking water utilities can replace customer-owned portions of lead service lines (LSL) without the owner’s consent. The provisions are designed to overcome what has become a major challenge facing utilities as they strive to eliminate LSLs in their service area in a cost-effective manner—cooperation of customers.
Lead in Water: Our Comments on EPA’s Proposed Improvements to LCR
If finalized as proposed, the rule should virtually eliminate the estimated 9.2 million lead service lines (LSLs) from our public water systems with the vast majority replaced by 2037. This would be a major achievement in the effort to reduce children’s and adult’s exposure to lead in drinking water.
Lead in Water: Critical Ambiguity in EPA’s Proposed Lead and Copper Rule
As Unleaded Kids was preparing to submit comments by the February 5 deadline, we noticed a critical problem with the EPA proposal that could undermine achievement of the Biden Administration’s goal of eliminating LSLs. The proposal leaves ambiguous whether the mandate to replace LSLs includes lines on private property.
Congress proposes deep cuts in funding to control lead hazards
In an extraordinary move, the House Committee sought to take back $564.2 million in funds appropriated in previous years that HUD had not obligated by executing a grant or contract. This proposed rescission represents almost half of the total funding that Congress appropriated for the grants in the three prior years.
EPA asks to meet with telecom execs about lead cables
The Wall Street Journal provided an update on its groundbreaking investigation indicating that lead pipes used for telecom cables are releasing lead into the environment. There are more than 66,000 miles of these lead telecom cables hanging from telephone poles or in lakes, rivers, and streams across the United States.
Lead in Baby Food and in Faucets—New Year Means Good News
Beginning January 1, 2024, manufacturers of baby food or of drinking water faucets must comply with new requirements designed to reduce people’s exposure to lead. California’s legislature played a significant role making each happen. Let’s start with mandatory testing of baby food for arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury and then turn to tighter lead leaching standards for drinking water faucets and related devices.