I-Team: Towns Failing To Notify Homeowners About Lead Pipes

NEWTON (CBS) - Safe drinking water is something many of us take for granted.

However, that changed for Susan Arena the day she received a certified letter in the mail about the water pipes leading to her Newton home.

"Your service line has been identified as possibly containing lead," the letter warned.

Knowing lead is a toxin and particularly dangerous to the developing brains of small children, Arena had a flood of emotions thinking of her 4-year-old son and 2-year-old daughter.

"It was scary and I felt a little bit out of control and wanting an immediate fix," she told the WBZ I-Team.

Arena was one of 641 homeowners to recently receive the letter from the City of Newton.

Norman Richardson lives just around the corner and while he doesn't have young children, the toxicologist is glad his local government is taking the step of notifying homeowners.

"Lead is a very toxic compound. It's definitely a concern," he said.

Water service lines run from the water main under the street to the home. Communities stopped using lead decades ago, but thousands of these pipes still remain in older neighborhoods.

Cities and towns are responsible for the portion of the line that runs from the main to the property line; the homeowner is responsible for the rest. Either section of pipe, or the entire line can be made of lead.

Martin Suuberg is the commissioner at the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP). He commends cities like Boston, which has an online map outlining the addresses of every home with a suspected lead service line.

The Boston Water and Sewer Commission also has an aggressive program to help homeowners replace those lines. "We need to be able to demonstrate to citizens that people know that we are on top of this issue," Suuberg said.

However, the I-Team found many communities are not publicly sharing the locations of lead service lines. After surveying dozens of communities, WBZ-TV found plenty of examples: Marlborough, which has 1,200 lines; Winchester, Melrose and the Westwood-Dedham water district all reporting having about 700; and officials in Malden estimated they have thousands.

Many of the communities struggle with old, paper records that are difficult to manage. But Arena believes it is essential information for homeowners to have.

"The fact that these cities and towns have had these records for decades is so disheartening to me," she said.

The federal government wants the information out there, too. In February, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sent letters to every state, urging leaders to communicate with cities and towns about the importance of transparency.

The letter specifically recommends making public the locations of lead service lines.

But the I-Team discovered the DEP did not share that advice with cities and towns until the agency sent out an email on July 22nd, nearly five months later. The email was sent the same day an I-Team producer called the agency to ask about it.

When asked about the delay, Commissioner Suuberg said the DEP wanted to make sure it had the most up-to-date information before reaching out to the individual communities.

Given the national focus on lead in water supplies, Suuberg agreed access to information is key.

"There is a real emphasis nationally on transparency," he said. "It's going to be an intensive effort. It's going to be an ongoing effort."

Part of that effort includes loans to help replace lead service lines. The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, or MWRA, is offering up $100 Million dollars in loans to its member communities.

There are also state funds available and Boston Mayor Marty Walsh has allocated budget money to help offset the cost for homeowners to replace their lead service lines.

On average, the homeowner's portion of a replacement is about $5,000. It can be more or less depending on the length of water line.

One important note: just because a home has a lead service line does not necessarily mean the toxin ends up in the water source.

Concerned homeowners can seek out professional testing, which is often fairly inexpensive. Some communities provide the service for free.

As a precaution, Arena had her pediatrician test her kids' blood for lead. She feels fortunate the results came back normal, but can't help wonder about the 'what ifs.'

"If the test had come back differently, my heart would be broken and I would be enraged about why this hasn't been taken care of earlier," she said.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, running your faucet cold for up to two minutes should eliminate any lead that may have leached into the tap water.

You should also contact your local water department with any questions. While the records may be antiquated, many of them can research your home and tell if they suspect you may have a lead service line.

However, there are some communities that simply don't have the records.

There is another unknown when it comes to lead pipes: It's called a gooseneck.

The piece of lead was often used between the main line and the service line to the home to offer a little bit of flexibility when laying the line. Many towns admit they have no idea how many of these 2-foot lead pieces are in the ground. One DPW director told the I-Team he has nightmares about them.

The state is aware of goosenecks, too. But right now, there is no practical way to find them without digging up the streets. Many DPW directors say they routinely remove them when they have the street opened for other reasons.

Commissioner Suuberg urged residents to call his agency with any questions they cannot get answered from their local water department.

Find a certified lab to test water here: http://public.dep.state.ma.us/Labcert/Labcert.aspx

MassDEP information on lead service lines: http://www.mass.gov/eea/agencies/massdep/water/drinking/lead-service-line-replacement-requirements.html