On December 16, 2021, the EPA revised its Lead and Copper rule to better protect communities from exposure to lead in drinking water ( https://www.wwdmag.com/regulations/race ). The new rule requires municipalities to identify all lead water supply lines by October 24, 2024 and begin their removal. Together with our water purveyor, Bolton Point, the Village is developing plans to address this new rule.
As with many older communities across the country, the Village has some lead in its municipal water service. Bolton Point has carefully monitored the situation with annual testing at residences with known lead pipes. The results have never exceeded 40% of the level that would require remediation.
Our water system is made up of three categories of pipes:
- Water mains, which run under the road and are maintained by Bolton Point.
- Village laterals, which run from the main to the “curb box” on your property. The Village is responsible for these.
- Residence laterals, which run from the “curb box” to your house. These are your responsibility.
The mains are lead free. Bolton Point knows of 21 residences in the Village with lead in either the Village lateral or the residence lateral or both. They have also identified 226 residences that may have lead laterals. To comply with the new Federal rule, these need to be inventoried. These 226 households have received a letter telling them about the problem. If you did not receive a letter and are not among the 21 who know they have lead somewhere in their water lines, your pipes do not have lead in the Village or residence laterals.
The Village will identify the pipe composition of both laterals of affected residences by excavating the curb box on the home-owner’s property. Given the number of homes involved, this could extend through 2022 and possibly into 2023. If there is lead in the Village lateral it will be put on the list to be replaced. If lead is found in a residence lateral, the resident may elect to replace the line at their own expense. Planning for this excavation project has begun, including the solicitation of funds to help underwrite the cost and the hiring of a contractor. We will keep the community informed about our progress on our web page including an FAQ (URL) and by articles in the ENewsBlast.
UPDATE 7.24.23
Letters have been sent out to residents that have unknown water service pipes. Work will begin soon on identifying these service lines at the curb box. Check out the current post for more information.
UPDATE 8.3.23
Work will begin August 9th. Click the link to see a tentative schedule. The number of services that can be done on a daily basis will dictate if the schedule has to change or not.
UPDATE 8.29.23
Work continues, although it is slower then expected, we are pleased with the results so far.
UPDATE 9.15.23
Work is finished for the season. Out of 147 unknown service lines, 81 were excavated and identified. Those with lines that were discovered to NOT be copper will receive a letter in the mail in the next week. Work will hopefully start again in the spring. When all unknown properties are discovered the Village will decide next steps. View the following LINK to see the discoveries.
If you are concerned about lead in your water, you can take the following steps:
- To reduce the concentration of lead in your water, run the tap for a few minutes in the morning.
- Never use hot water from the tap for drinking or cooking.
- A simple filter like a Brita filter will remove lead in your water.
- Take advantage of New York State’s free testing program If the results come back positive, please contact the Village right away.
