Lead pipes, antiquated law threaten Wisconsin`s drinking water quality

Experts, and even some regulators, say existing laws are failing to protect Wisconsin and the nation from harmful exposure to lead in drinking water that leaches from aging plumbing — a danger illustrated by the public health crisis in Flint, Michigan.

At least 176,000 so-called lead service lines connect older Wisconsin homes to the iron water mains that deliver municipal water, according to an estimate by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Milwaukee alone, where 60 percent of the state’s known lead-poisoned children live, has 70,000 lead service lines....

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Ken Notes: This should be resolved over time and cautiously but it should be resolved. Any older home is at some risk and the utilities rely on chemical reactions in the pipe walls to protect the water. When water supplies change the reactions can be reversed which is what happened in Flint and could happen here. Don`t over react just start to react... FYI as a former mayor, if most of us saw where are water came from (i.e. pipes and treatment) few would drink it. But our engineers and treatment plant operators are some of the best in the world...