The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) established the Lead and Copper Rule in 1991 to reduce exposure to lead and copper in water. These contaminants primarily enter drinking water through corrosion of service lines, fixtures, or plumbing. The EPA has revised this rule multiple times since 1991.

In 2021, the EPA  released its Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR), which includes the Service Line Inventory requirement. This initiative requires public water systems, including Skagit PUD, to complete a service line material inventory and develop a lead pipe replacement plan by October 2024. The inventory includes all water service lines and their materials from the main to the meter (public side) and the meter to the building (private side). This mandate aims to help safeguard public health by ensuring that water systems across the United States develop and maintain comprehensive inventories of service line materials. The EPA requires the inventory to be complete by October 16, 2024.

A service line is the water pipe that connects your home or business to the public water main. It conveys water from the main to the faucets, toilets, and other fixtures within your house and can typically be seen in the basement or utility area where it enters your home.

No. One of the main goals of the revisions to the Lead and Copper Rule is to identify the material of all water service lines for customer awareness. Identifying out-of-date materials, such as lead, is the first step toward removing them from the distribution system. This is a requirement of all water utilities across the country.

Public water systems must conduct an inventory of all service lines on both the water system and homeowner sides of the meter and submit the results to the EPA by October 16, 2024. Service line materials must, at a minimum, be classified as one of the following:

1. A lead service line is a line with any portion of the pipe made of lead that connects the water main to the building inlet.
   
   
2. A non-lead service line is any line determined through an evidence-based record, method, or technique not to be lead or galvanized requiring replacement. Examples include plastic, copper, or galvanized lines not downstream of a known lead service line. The use of lead materials in plumbing was banned in 1986 under the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act. Service lines installed after 1985 are considered non-lead because this is when the lead ban was enacted.
   
   
3. A galvanized service line is considered galvanized requiring replacement if it was ever, or is currently, downstream of any lead service line (not including lead goosenecks or pigtails) or service line of unknown material.
   
   
4. Any service line with no documented evidence supporting material classification is considered a lead status unknown service line.

Skagit PUD takes water quality seriously and is working diligently to meet the EPA’s requirements. Our work includes creating an inventory of PUD and customer-side water lines and the materials they are made of.

We’ve conducted an exhaustive historical records review, and our preliminary findings indicate an extremely low probability of lead existing on utility-owned sections of service lines. Historically, water purveyors haven’t been responsible for the customer’s (private) service line.  This project is unique because we must also identify the materials from the meter to the building (private side). 

The following information sources (methodologies) can be used to classify service lines in the initial inventory.

• Records. All construction and plumbing codes, permits, existing records, and other documentation that indicate the service line materials used to connect structures to the distribution system, such as distribution system maps and drawings, historical records on each service connection, and meter installation records.
  
  
• Installation date. Any piping installed after January 1, 1986, can be categorized as non-lead. If the water supplier has a documented construction standard established before that date that did not allow lead to be used for service lines, any service installed after that date can be categorized as non-lead.
  
  
• Service line size. Any service line with a diameter of 2 inches or greater can be categorized as non-lead.
  
  
• Visual inspection. Each service line, or portion of the service line if jointly owned, may be excavated or exposed at one location to identify the material, or the water supplier may inspect the service line as it enters the building.
  
  
• Statistical analysis. If no lead service lines have been identified using the above methodologies, a random sampling of a portion of the remaining unknown service lines that provides a 95% confidence level can be visually inspected. If no lead service lines are found in the randomized pool, all remaining unknown service lines can be categorized as non-lead. The PUD has qualified for the statistical analysis approach and will visually inspect a random sample pool.

You will receive a letter notifying you that Skagit PUD crews will be in your area to conduct the inspection.

Service line locations chosen for visual inspection were selected from a randomized pool of service lines with an unknown material type. Being selected does not indicate you have lead service lines.

Skagit PUD crews will use an industrial vacuum truck to create two holes in the ground, one on each side of the meter box. The holes will be about 6- to 10-inches in diameter. The industrial vacuum will extract soil down to the service line, where crews will examine and document the public and private service line material. The holes will be backfilled, and restoration work will follow for any disturbed turf or hard surface areas.

Hundreds of water samples are collected annually at the water source, during treatment, and in the distribution system to determine the presence of any radioactive, biological, inorganic, volatile organic, or synthetic organic contaminants. 

Lead in drinking water is primarily from materials and components associated with service lines and interior plumbing. Lead and copper can leach into a water system from the piping or the fixtures (faucets). Homes built or plumbed with copper pipe before the 1986 lead solder ban may have used lead-based solder. 

Skagit PUD is required to monitor for lead and copper at household taps once every three years. Ongoing testing shows that Skagit PUD’s drinking water meets or exceeds all state and federal drinking water standards for lead and copper. For additional information on where your water comes from and testing results, please view Skagit PUD’s annual Consumer Confidence Report.

The greatest risk of lead exposure is to infants, young children, and pregnant women. Lead can cause serious health problems if too much enters the body. Lead is stored in the bones and can be released later in life. Lead can cause damage to the brain and kidneys, interfere with the production of red blood cells that carry oxygen, and may result in lowered IQ in children. During pregnancy, the child receives lead from the mother’s bones, which may affect brain development. Low lead levels can affect adults with high blood pressure or kidney problems.

If present, elevated levels of lead can cause serious health problems, especially for pregnant women and young children. Lead in drinking water is primarily from materials and components associated with service lines and home plumbing.

Skagit PUD is responsible for providing high-quality drinking water but cannot control the variety of materials used in plumbing components. When your water has been sitting for several hours, you can minimize the potential for lead exposure by flushing your tap for 30 seconds to 2 minutes before using water for drinking or cooking.

Regularly clean your faucet’s screen (also known as an aerator). Sediment, debris, and lead particles can collect in your aerator. If lead is caught in the aerator, lead can get into your water.

If you are concerned about lead in your water, you may wish to have it tested. The Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 1-800-426-4791 or www.epa.gov/safewater/lead provides information on lead in drinking water, testing methods, and steps you can take to minimize exposure. 

Skagit PUD has created an interactive public inventory map. You can search for your address to learn if your property might have a lead service line or a galvanized line that could contain lead.

You will be notified by mail that your service line is either unknown, lead, or galvanized requiring replacement within 30 days of the inventory completion. Customers will receive information about lead exposure, flushing pipes, and further lead testing. In the case of a rental property, both the renter and property owner will be contacted.

You will be notified by mail that your service line is either unknown, lead, or galvanized requiring replacement within 30 days of the inventory completion. However, once a lead line is replaced, lead particles are more likely to be released into the water. For this reason, Skagit PUD will provide you with a pitcher filter and replacement cartridges if a lead service line replacement is planned or another disturbance occurs that may affect the potential for lead to enter your water service line.

The EPA proposed draft Lead and Copper Rule Improvements (LCRI) requires water systems to replace all lead and galvanized requiring replacement service lines within 10 years. In the unlikely event that the PUD finds any publicly owned service lines requiring replacement, we should be able to greatly expedite that timeline. 

The plan will replace every service line located between Skagit PUD’s water main and the meter identified as lead or galvanized requiring replacement.

Replacement of customer service lines is the responsibility of the property owner. Federal or state funding may become available in the future to assist homeowners with replacing their private service lines. You can also contact a licensed plumber for work on your service line or to determine if you have lead in your private plumbing components.