President Joe Biden will be in Milwaukee on Tuesday to secure more funding to improve drinking water and replace lead pipes.
These efforts are funded by $2.6 billion from the bipartisan Infrastructure Act. He will also announce a final U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule that would require drinking water systems to replace lead pipes that connect street water mains to properties known as service lines by 2037.
“This funding will not only provide clean drinking water, but these efforts will also create good-paying jobs, many of them union jobs, replacing lead pipes and delivering clean water,” said White House Deputy Chief of Staff Natalie Quillian. ».
Lead poisoning can have lifelong consequences, especially for young children, and there is no safe level of exposure. Sources include chipped paint and piping that carries potable water.
Before the visit was announced, Milwaukee water officials and members of the Common Council raised concerns that the increased focus on lead pipes could give residents a false sense of security, given the serious dangers of lead paint in the city’s aging housing stock.
In 2021, the city earmarked $26 million in federal emergency aid for lead paint abatement. Additional funding to address lead paint is to be announced by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and Milwaukee County will receive $7.75 million of the nearly $13 million allocated to Wisconsin, according to the White House report.
Biden’s trip to Milwaukee comes amid Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign for the White House.
Biden’s trip on Tuesday comes as his running mate, Kamala Harris, is running for the White House against former US President Donald Trump. Both campaigns are moving through Wisconsin, a critical swing state, ahead of the Nov. 5 election.
In July, Biden dropped his bid for re-election after a disastrous debate and endorsed Harris.
Michael S. “Harris has been an important partner for EPA as we’ve traveled the country, and he’s been outstanding in the president’s vision of a 100% lead-free future, as well as helping people understand the implications,” EPA Administrator Reagan said. Exposure to lead.”
The White House says Wisconsin will receive $43 million of the $2.6 billion to improve drinking water and replace lead pipes.
A $43 million cut of the $2.6 billion would go to Wisconsin. State governments will then determine how much goes to local water systems, according to the White House.
Water Works superintendent says the city of Milwaukee will replace 2,400 lead service lines by 2024.
According to the Milwaukee Water Works website, the city of Milwaukee has about 65,000 residential lead service lines.
Water Supervisor Patrick Paley told the council’s Public Works Committee last week that since Jan. 1, 2017, the city has replaced more than 8,000 lead pipes.
Pauley said 2,400 lead pipes will be replaced in Milwaukee this year — more than the 2,200 budgeted for replacements.
A year ago, the city received $30 million to replace the lead service line, and Pauley said the city has applied for $34.2 million for 2025. He expected the award to be announced earlier this month.
The water company is looking to replace 3,500 lead service lines by 2025, he said. He said he would have to increase the number of replacements annually in 2026 and 2027 to meet the 2037 deadline.
Milwaukee water officials and council members raise concerns about lead paint
At last week’s committee meeting, questions were raised about the sources used for lead pipes and the consideration of that source of lead over other sources such as paint.
Michelle Natarajan, director of Water Works water quality, said historical data shows that even in buildings with lead service lines, the water company’s corrosion control treatment is “very effective.”
“The problem with lead is that it’s variable, and so any time there’s lead plumbing or a lead service line, there’s some risk,” he told the committee. “So, it’s not bad to remove them, but a lot of resources are being spent in an area where we’re not seeing an increase in total lead in the water.”
Ald. Robert Bauman said that lead pipe replacement “is now almost a dogma nationally, … yet the actual data doesn’t show that it’s a big problem.”
Paley said the challenges of reducing lead in paint and soil are significantly greater than replacing a lead service line, which he said can be done in four hours. In some ways, the focus has shifted to water and lead service lines because the process is easier to handle, he said.
He raised concerns that this could give residents a false sense of security.
“We fight, as I think the Department of Health does, by focusing on water, which is really a disservice to society if we don’t emphasize the risks of other contributors,” Paoli told the committee. “If the belief is that it’s water and you replace the lead service line and you’re safe, that’s a loss.”
A Journal Sentinel analysis of data from the state Department of Health Services last year found the highest childhood lead exposure in Milwaukee was concentrated in census tracts that were predominantly black, had older housing and higher rates of building code violations. . Housing where chipping lead paint is a particular hazard for children.
These factors were more associated with childhood lead poisoning rates than other variables, such as the presence of lead service lines. Although lead pipes are a known cause of childhood lead exposure, they exist in most parts of the city, regardless of population or income level.
On Monday, U.S. Sen. Tommy Baldwin announced that Milwaukee County will receive $7.75 million and Kenosha County will receive nearly $5.2 million to remove lead paint from homes. According to Baldwin’s office, the funding is from the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Grant Program.
Alison Dear can be reached at adirr@jrn.com. Mary Spicuzza can be reached at mary.spicuzza@jrn.com.
#President #Joe #Biden #announced #replacement #lead #water #pipes #Milwaukee