Trump administration moves to revamp lead tests for water
WASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency is preparing to overhaul the way communities test their water for lead, a policy change that will be pitched before Election Day as a major environmental achievement for a president not noted for his conservation record.
But a draft of the final rule obtained by the New York Times shows the EPA rejected top medical and scientific experts who urged the agency to require the replacement of the country’s 6 million to 10 million lead service lines, an expensive but effective way to avoid crises like the one still a±icting Flint, Mich.
The measure is the first major update in nearly three decades to the 1991 Lead and Copper Rule, a regulation aimed at protecting drinking water from lead, a neurotoxin that has been linked to developmental problems in children.
The new rule requires for the first time testing for lead in all schools and day care centers.
“The rule will better identify high levels of lead, improve the reliability of lead tap sampling results, strengthen corrosion control treatment requirements, expand consumer awareness and improve risk communication,” the draft from mid-July said.
But rather than enact the sweeping changes that some health leaders say are necessary, the EPA is opting for more modest improvements. Some experts and critics said the new rule actually weakens the current rule in significant ways, for instance, by more than doubling the amount of time utilities can have to replace water systems with serious levels of lead contamination.
“What’s the point of making the change?” said Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, whose state enacted the country’s toughest lead standard for drinking water in the wake of the Flint disaster. Michigan also has required water suppliers to replace all lead service lines on public and private property before 2041.
“Originally, we were encouraged that the Trump administration said they wanted to update the rule,” Whitmer said. But when told of the final rule, she called it “sorely disappointing.”
James Hewitt, an EPA spokesman, said in a statement that it is “premature to draw any conclusions on a rule that is still undergoing interagency review.”
He added that the Trump administration “is committed to finally acting to better protect our children’s health and holistically address lead in America’s water systems.”