MILWAUKEE — Contractors continue to work to replace the more than 60,000 lead service lines across the City of Milwaukee.
Now, Milwaukee Water Works has developed a new plan to prioritize replacement in the city’s most disadvantaged areas.
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) says when you have a lead service line, clean water that flows through the line can carry lead from the pipe. This could end up in your drinking water if you don't let the water run for a few minutes first. Drinking lead-contaminated water can cause health risks, especially for young children.
Now, Milwaukee Water Works has come up with what it's calling an Equity Prioritization Plan.
“So we are basing the prioritization on the Area Deprivation Index. It's an index created by a professor at the University of Wisconsin Madison. We're taking into account the elevated, the incidence of elevated blood lead levels, and we're taking into account the density of lead service lines in particular neighborhoods,” said Milwaukee Water Works Superintendent Patrick Pauly.
The plan will identify neighborhood census blocks across the city. Each will be given a score based on a number of socioeconomic factors like income, education, employment, and housing quality.
Milwaukee Water Works says the areas most in need are the near north and south sides of the city.
“There is a large density of lead services and unfortunately a large, larger incidence of elevated blood lead levels and children,” said Superintendent Pauly.
According to Milwaukee Water Works, 62%, or nearly 41,000 service lines, are on the north side of Milwaukee.
Superintendent Pauly sees this proposal as a more equitable and focused approach to replacing more service lines in the city.
“In the current program and a lot of instances we're sending a contractor to one location to replace the service and the following day they're mobilizing to a different location, completely separate and that's not efficient for the work and it's not efficient for the cost,” said Superintendent Pauly.
Although still in the planning stages, Milwaukee Water Works hopes its plan will be in front of Common Council committees by late fall, and receive final approval before next year.
As of February 28, 2023, Milwaukee Water Works says it has replaced 113 lead service lines.
Milwaukee Water Works has an online tool you can use to see if the home or apartment you live in has a lead service line.
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