In December 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released new regulations related to lead and copper pipes. By October 2024, every city in the country is required to inventory all service lines in the city.
“It’s a massive undertaking,” Public Works Director Jody Hooks said of the work the city must complete in just over a year.
If any contain lead or copper, they will have to eventually be replaced. How that work will be funded is still a bridge the city has to cross, Hooks said.
The Texas Water Development Board has made available $213 million for grants related to replacing lead and copper pipes. It’s most likely this money will go to less affluent communities first, but it’s possible League City could receive some of the money, depending on how much lead and copper is found in the city’s pipes, officials said.
Inventory requirements
To inventory pipes, city officials have to look through paperwork including building permits, inspections and historical records to determine exactly what each pipe is made of. The city has hired a consultant, CDM Smith, to help with the process, officials said.
Confirmation will also require plenty of “boots on the ground,” with crews going to certain properties to confirm unknowns, Hook said.
For instance, as of mid-July, League City crews were visiting and investigating 27 multifamily complexes that could have lead and copper pipes. While League City is a relatively new city with plenty of new construction that doesn’t include dangerous materials in pipes, some areas of the city, such as the historic district, are more at risk of having lead and copper pipes, Hooks said.
Fortunately, for the last eight to 10 years, League City has had an aggressive waterline replacement program, which has given the city a head start. The city is relatively young, too, which means there’s less likelihood of finding dangerous pipes.
“We’re pretty confident we’re not going to find much,” Hooks said.
In fact, almost two-thirds of city and private service lines have been cleared because they were developed after 1989, when the state of Texas banned the use of lead pipes in water lines. Home built before 1989 have a higher risk of having lead materials present in the line from the water meter to the home, said Sarah Greer Osborne, director of communications and community engagement.
“We’re in good shape compared to other cities,” she said.
Help from residents
The work will require residents’ participation as well.
The city is required to check every pipe from the water main to each water meter. However, pipes from the water meter to the point of entry to the building are residents’ responsibility.
City officials are working on outreach programs, flyers, social media posts and a website to educate residents of what will be required and how to inventory their service lines. Those materials will begin circulating later this summer.
Regardless, city officials ensured the city’s drinking water is safe. The city’s tap water is in full compliance with all federal, state and other guidelines.
“By conducting this citywide inventory, we are not only following the new EPA guidelines, but we will be able to guarantee the identification and removal of all potential lead service lines in our city,” Osborne said.
While the EPA’s new regulations were released in December 2021, many questions remained as to what exactly would be required of cities. The city did not receive guidance until October 2022, which is why League City officials did not begin inventorying the city’s pipes until summer 2023, officials said.
