{"id":11736,"date":"2023-06-29T12:56:11","date_gmt":"2023-06-29T17:56:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/health\/?p=11736"},"modified":"2023-07-07T12:42:16","modified_gmt":"2023-07-07T17:42:16","slug":"lead-pipe-survey-flaws","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/health\/2023\/06\/29\/lead-pipe-survey-flaws\/","title":{"rendered":"Flaws found in EPA\u2019s lead pipe survey of states and water utilities"},"content":{"rendered":"

Deep Dive: <\/strong>Read our Deep Dives\u00a0blog<\/a> for an in-depth analysis on the data that drove the 2023 allocation of federal funding for lead service line replacements.<\/p>\n

What’s New<\/strong>: <\/strong>EPA recently estimated<\/a> there are 9.2 million lead service lines (LSLs) in the nation\u2019s drinking water infrastructure based on information reported by states and water utilities. This was collected as part of a survey conducted every four years to understand drinking water infrastructure needs.<\/p>\n

The agency estimated the number of LSLs for each state. Two had surprisingly high numbers: Florida with 1.2 million LSLs and Texas with 650,000.<\/p>\n

After reviewing data EPA used to estimate each state\u2019s totals[1]<\/a>, we believe that these two may have less than 100,000 LSLs each. If true, this means the country may actually have about 1.6 million fewer<\/em> LSLs than originally thought \u2013 good news overall.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Why It Matters: <\/strong>EPA used the estimated LSLs for each state to allocate a share of the $3 billion dedicated to LSL replacement in this fiscal year. The allocations are already set for FY23 but could be adjusted for the next three years.<\/p>\n

Next Steps: <\/strong>This fall, states and utilities will have the opportunity to resubmit their responses, a decision made by EPA that we applaud. We believe this will lead to a more equitable allocation of LSL replacement funding for the next three years.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[1]<\/a> This data is readily available because of a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) submission<\/a> by the Natural Resources Defense Council seeking the survey responses.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Deep Dive: Read our Deep Dives\u00a0blog for an in-depth analysis on the data that drove the 2023 allocation of federal funding for lead service line replacements. What’s New: EPA recently estimated there are 9.2 million lead service lines (LSLs) in the nation\u2019s drinking water infrastructure based on information reported by states and water utilities. This …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":152912,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[114036,114081,114106],"tags":[104,68,91754,91857,91787],"coauthors":[114052,114044],"class_list":["post-11736","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-deep-dives","category-drinking-water","category-lead","tag-drinking-water","tag-epa","tag-lead-in-drinking-water","tag-lead-service-line-replacement","tag-lead-service-lines"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t