Historic Lead Pipe Proposal Is a 'Pediatrician's Dream'

The Biden administration proposed a historic and ambitious rule on Thursday that would require water systems across the US to replace virtually all their lead pipes in 10 years, reports Reuters. The idea behind the EPA proposal is to avoid any repeats of the public health disaster that unfolded in Flint, Michigan. Coverage:

• Numbers: The nation still has an estimated 9 million lead pipes, and the EPA says it could cost up to $45 billion to replace them, per the Washington Post. Under the rule, utilities would have to replace at least 10% of their lead service lines each year ahead of the 10-year deadline.
• Loophole: The rule has what the New York Times calls a "major loophole" in that it doesn't require utilities to pay for the replacement of lead pipes on private property leading to people's homes. One incentive for them to do so is that they'd be allowed to tap into $15 billion set aside for lead pipe removal in a 2021 infrastructure law. Otherwise, the cost can be prohibitive for homeowners or landlords, in the thousands of dollars, and the Post notes that advocates are skeptical the push to replace all lead pipes is possible without requiring utilities to pay for everything.

• Risks, praise: Despite that loophole, the rule is being praised by advocates given that even low levels of lead exposure can cause permanent cognitive damage, especially in small children. "This is like a pediatrician's dream come true," pediatrician Mona Hanna-Attisha, who helped expose the Flint crisis, tells the Post. "I am overjoyed on behalf of kids everywhere—kids in Flint, in Newark, Chicago, Milwaukee, Washington, DC, and Jackson and places we know of and don't know of."
• Widespread: CNN cites a 2021 analysis by the National Resources Defense Council, an environmental nonprofit, which found that more than half of the nation's population got its water from systems whose lead levels exceeded levels recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
• Pushback: The Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies calls the rule "a massive unfunded mandate" that could result in higher water bills, per the Post. Chief executive Tom Dobbins says utilities will need more money and technical help from the federal government to achieve the goal, per the Times. The industry says the total cost could run to $60 billion, even more than the EPA's high-end estimate.
• What's next: The EPA will take public comments for 60 days before publishing a final version of the rule, expected in the fall of 2024, per the AP. There would be a waiting period before the law goes into effect and the clock begins ticking on the 10-year deadline.

(More lead poisoning stories.)