H20 Lead Awareness
We need your help!
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued regulations requiring all public water supply systems to develop a water service line inventory of both water district-owned and customer-owned service lines. This includes information from home and business owners on the type of material their water service line and interior plumbing is made of. The collection of information, required by the EPA, is to help identify and eventually eliminate any Lead service lines or interior plumbing. Consolidated Water District #1 must submit this inventory to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) by October 6, 2024!
Consolidated water has NO record of Lead pipe ever being used in our distribution system. However, lead pipes, galvanized pipes and copper pipe with lead-based solder may have been used in your home or business.
The survey includes questions about the water service line and plumbing in your home and business. Please take the time to respond to the survey. If you are unsure of the type of materials in your home, the Water district staff can help identify these materials. Call our office to set up an appointment.
Step 1: Get your questions answered below.
Step 2: Identify your pipes & where to test
For help with step, click HERE and review how to idenify the different materials that pipes are made of and how you can identify yours.
Step 3: Take the survey
Once you have identified what metal your water pipes are that are coming into the house it’s time to take the survey. This should just take you a few minutes. Click HERE to take the survey.
Get your questions answered here.
The United States Environmental Agency (EPA) has passed a regulation that makes it a priority to remove all public and private lead pipes that water passes through. Water providers across the country are being required to inventory all pipes within their distribution systems and in private homes/businesses to find the lead pipes.
There are NO lead pipes in Consolidated Water District #1’s distribution system!!! But there may be lead pipes, or pipes that can resemble lead pipes in homes and businesses. It is our job to help find those and work toward removing them.
Yes!!! Consolidated Water District #1 has been placed on reduced monitoring by KDHE, due to the extremely low levels found in our service area after testing.
Lead and copper can enter drinking water primarily through plumbing materials. Exposure to lead and copper may cause health problems. Lead has been used in numerous consumer products, lead is a metal now known to be harmful to human health if inhaled or ingested. Lead can be found in ambient air, soil/dust, food, and water, paint, among many others, including gasoline. In the last few decades, federal controls on lead in gasoline have significantly reduced people’s exposure to lead.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, lead affects young children and the elderly the most. A dose of lead that would have little effect on an adult can have a larger effect on a small body.
Lead in drinking water rarely comes from the water treatment process or the public water mains. The source of lead in your home’s water is most likely services lines, pipes or solder in your home’s/businesses plumbing.
Service lines run from the public water main to the customer’s home. Consolidated Water District #1 owns and maintains the portion of the service line from the water main to the water meter. The customer owns and is responsible for the portion of the service line from the meter to the home and all of the fixtures within the home.
The water district is responsible for the service line from the water main to the water meter. Customers are responsible for the service line from the water meter into the home/business. Cllick here to see more about service line responsiblity.
Plumbing fixtures (faucets) may contain lead if they are older faucets installed prior to 2014. Clilck here to see where lead can come from.
Short answer is maybe, if they are older faucets. Prior to 1986, lead was allowed to used in plumbing fixtures. Between 1986 and 2014, Congress allowed plumbing fixtures to contain up to 8% lead. After 2014, all plumbing fixtures must contain less that 0.25% lead.
The only long-term solution to protect your health is to remove the pipes and replace them with copper or plastic. Have your water tested. Call the Health Department or our office and we will provide you with a phone number to a laboratory nearby. Run your water. Before drinking, flush your home’s pipes by running the tap, taking a shower, doing laundry, or doing a load of dishes. Use cold water. Boiling water does not remove lead from the water. Clean your aerator. Regularly clean your faucet’s screen/aerator. Sediment, debris, and lead particles can collect in your aerator. Use your filter properly. If you use a filter, make sure your use a filter certified to remove lead. Using an expired filter can make the filter less effective in removing lead.
You cannot see, taste or smell lead in drinking water. Testing is the only way to detect lead in drinking water. Testing for lead in water range from $15 to $100 by a certified laboratory.
You should be suspicious if you live in a home that contains lead pipes or if your non-plastic plumbing pipes are older than 2014. Lead pipes are a dull gray metal that is soft enough to be easily scratched with a key or screwdriver.
Flush your pipes before drinking! Water sitting in your pipes for 6 hours or longer can have lead leach into the water. Flush your cold water pipes by running water until it becomes as cold as it will get. Boiling water does not reduce lead in water. Use only water from the cold water tap for drinking and making baby formula.
Consolidated Water has never used lead pipes in our distribution system. Any lead pipes supplying water to your home/business have been installed by the customer. The Water District complies with the EPA Lead and Copper Rule. We purchase water from the KCK Board of Public Utilities that is treated with a corrosion inhibitor. This practice prevents the leaching of metals including lead and copper into the drinking water. Since 2014, Consolidated Water specifies and installs only lead-free fittings.
Water samples from your tap may be collected and sent to a qualified laboratory for analysis. Consolidated Water is not a certified laboratory. The following laboratories may be contacted to test your water.
Keystone Laboratories Johnson County Environmental Water Quality Lab
835 S. Saint Paul 11811 South Sunset Dr., Suite 1700
Kansas City, KS 66105 Olathe, KS 66061
913-321-7856 913-715-6950
The EPA in their latest regulation states there is no safe level of lead in drinking water. If test results show that there is lead in your household water, it is advisable, especially if there are young children in the home, to reduce the lead level in your tap water as much as possible. Consolidated Water is interested in the results of any water tests. If you have your water tested, please share the certified lab report with us at [email protected] or call our office at 913-724-7000.
There are many devices that are certified to reduce lead in your home. Be certain the device meets the National Sanitation Foundation (NSF) standards. For lead removal, filters must be certified to meet NSF Standard 53.
Yes, but it will not cause you to have more lead in your home. The water district has never had lead pipes in our distribution system. When work is completed on the water main in your area, take the following steps: Flush all of the faucets in your home/business for 3-5 minutes at a high flow rate. Flush the cold water side only. Remove and clean the aerators on your faucets.
The goal is to get all lead out of the drinking water in homes/businesses. Every water provider must develop an inventory of all materials of service lines connected to the public water system, regardless of ownership. All results will be made available to the public. The inventory must be submitted to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) by Oct. 16, 2024
Our customers are urged to call our office at 913-724-7000 with any questions.