The City of Centerville began mailing Lead Service Line Inventory letters to all water customers this week as part of a federal requirement from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
The city says the letters are a nationwide initiative to inform all public water system users of the possible presence of lead in their water service lines. A water service line is the portion of the waterline that runs from the City’s Water Main to a residence and throughout the home.
Each letter will inform recipients of the City’s current understanding of the water service lines at their property. The letter will state one of the following:
- The City believes your property has lead service lines, or
- The City believes your property has galvanized service lines, or
- The City does not know the type of water service lines your property has.
The inventory and identification of service lines is a crucial step in minimizing potential lead exposure and protecting public health. The City of Centerville says it appreciates the community’s cooperation and understanding as it works to gather accurate information on the water infrastructure.
In an October city council meeting, Centerville City Administrator Jason Frasor said federal guidelines for the acceptable amount of lead have changed from 0.015 milligrams per liter to 0.01 milligrams per liter. Fraser said there are two or three houses that surpass the new threshold. While the city has not been given a current timeline on when to fix that issue, Fraser mentioned previous guidelines gave cities 10 years to deal with it.
