Cities deal with fallout of report on lead in water
Alarm bells rang in three Saskatchewan cities after a Canada-wide investigation uncovered some of the highest measured levels of lead-tainted water in the country. The culprit?
Not the cities’ water sources, but a number of lead pipes still in use either in public service lines or inside residents’ homes.
Sampling results detected levels as high as 10 times the allowable limit as per Health Canada guidelines (five parts per billion) — levels that put pregnant women and children especially at risk of health issues related to neurological development and behaviour, blood pressure and kidney problems.
The data was obtained through freedom of information legislation by a consortium of universities and media companies including the Leader-post and the Saskatoon Starphoenix and a report released in early November. Results had never been made public, leaving experts and residents concerned not only with their health, but government transparency as well.
“I feel let down,” said Regina resident Steve Wolfson of how the city has handled the situation. “(The city) made it sound like it wasn’t really terrible, but that it would be good to take precautions.”
NDP municipal relations critic Trent Wotherspoon raised the issue in the Saskatchewan legislature the same day the report was released and called the results “troubling.”
“I think right now we need a full assessment in a very urgent way, a true picture of what we’re dealing with by way of the levels of lead within the water and what the sources of that lead is and then to work in partnership with municipalities to make sure that we have safe drinking water,” he urged.
In response, Minister of Highways and Infrastructure Greg Ottenbreit emphasized Saskatchewan water sources are safe and the issue is at a municipal level with city-owned and privately-owned lead service lines.
Besides what he called record municipal revenue sharing, Ottenbreit said the province is not considering any additional assistance to municipalities to tackle the problem “at this time.”
Pat Wilson, director of water, waste and environmental services for the City of Regina, hoped the investigation would bring focus to the issue and result in more people taking advantage of the city’s free filter program to protect their families until replacement of the lead service lines can be completed.
At a special city council meeting on Dec. 3, council unanimously approved the acceleration of Regina’s Lead Service Connection Replacement Program, making a commitment to complete all replacements by 2025 whether the province helps pay for it or not. The original timeline wouldn’t have seen replacement complete for another 20 years.
Council also approved expanding the program to include replacement of the homeowner’s side of the connection and the creation of a support program that would see the city paying part or all of the costs of replacement up front so residents could repay over time, similar to what the City of Saskatoon offers.
When questioned about the investigation’s results, Saskatoon’s general manager of utilities and the environment Angela Gardiner emphasized that city’s water sources are safe.
“We don’t believe anyone is in danger,” she said in November despite high lead levels found in some Saskatoon homes and no filter program in place.