Iredell Water’s Compliance with the Lead and Copper Rule
In 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) revised the Lead & Copper Rule (LCR), a series of regulations aimed at protecting public health by reducing the potential for exposure to lead through drinking water. The revisions added new protective measures specifically focused on reducing exposure to lead from the nation’s public water systems and plumbing in private homes and businesses.
While the revised LCR reporting will not take full effect until October 2024, our work to comply with the revised Rule is well underway. This includes a respectful ask of some of our customers based on when their home or business was constructed, to help us identify lead pipes on the customers private property.
Iredell Water has consistently met all the evolving regulatory standards on water quality and provided you with high-quality water and services. It is important to note the water that enters your water mains to homes or businesses has no lead in it, and since our founding, we have not allowed the use of lead service lines in Iredell Water’s system.
However, homes or businesses constructed before March 1987 may have lead service lines or plumbing, which would enable small amounts of lead from pipes or solder to possibly dissolve into the water.
Because of the makeup of our system, we have easily met the EPA’s lead regulatory standards since lead testing began in 1992. Our more recent success in protecting our customers from lead can be found in our latest Water Quality Report, found here.
For more information about lead and drinking water, open the document below for a comprehensive list of Frequently Asked Questions.
Initial Service Line Inventory Work
To find lead wherever it may be in every water system in the country, the EPA’s revised LCR contains a new requirement that all public water systems nationwide develop an “initial inventory” of all their water service lines and connections, including – for the first time – all the water lines and connections on private properties.
A “service line” is the underground pipe carrying water from our main to a home or business. Each service line requires connections to the water main, the customer’s properties, and interior plumbing. Each service line and connection may consist of multiple plumbing material types, including lead, copper, iron, brass, and plastic.
We are responsible for our water main, the connections between our water main and our water meter, and the water meter. Our customers are responsible for the service line from the water meter to their home or business’s plumbing, as well as their private plumbing.
For more information about the Service Line Inventory, open the document below for a comprehensive list of Frequently Asked Questions about service line inventory work.
How You Can Help
As mentioned above, the Lead and Copper Rule requires us to investigate whether water service lines or connections on or within private customer properties contain lead. Because this work must take place on private property, we cannot access it without your permission. We need to partner with you to find out if lead exists on your property.
We want to respectfully ask for your assistance. To help you help us, we have designed a simple survey to help you find your service line, determine what it is made of, and send us your results so we can determine future actions, if they are necessary. You will also have the option of inviting us into your home or businesses to check your lines and connections for lead.
To access the survey, simply scan the QR code at the bottom of the page or by clicking here.
Public Information
In addition to actively updating this webpage, Iredell Water will use customer letters, postcards, door hangers, bill messages, and other communication tools to reach out to you as we start collecting data. You may also follow along with our progress by visiting our Lead Safe Community page by clicking here where you will see an infographic of our inventory progress updated in real time.
We will provide information through the news media and social media, and work with local officials to ensure you can find the latest details about our efforts.
