New lead testing method could reveal higher levels in water

 From the AP, reporter Michael Phillis. Full story here.

After the Flint water crisis, Michigan passed the country’s most aggressive lead measures, including more stringent testing of water. When using methods similar to what is currently required by the Environmental Protection Agency, testing of 170 systems in Michigan with lead lines resulted in 11 samples that exceeded the federal lead level requiring corrective action. When using another method like the one the EPA is reviewing and could soon mandate nationally, the figure doubled to 22.

With an even more thorough testing method Michigan adopted, it climbed to 31.

Other states are likely to see more elevated lead results as well under new testing; lead pipes still deliver water to millions of homes and businesses, a relic of the country’s outdated infrastructure.

“We should expect to see a very large number of utilities that are in compliance with the current rule no longer being in compliance,” said Daniel E. Giammar, an environmental engineering expert at Washington University in St. Louis.

Testing for lead involves turning on the tap and collecting a sample. Currently, federal regulations require sampling the first liter of water out of the tap. The new rule under review would leave the tap on longer to collect the fifth liter. Instead of water sitting near the faucet, the change is intended to test water that sits in the lead service lines that connect buildings to water mains.

And:

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says no amount of lead in drinking water is considered safe. Young children are especially vulnerable since exposure can slow their cognitive development and cause other health problems. Elin Warn Betanzo of Safe Water Engineering, a consulting firm, said water systems may have limited information on safety because of their sampling methods.

“They’ve used the absence of data to back up their statements that the water is safe,” she said.