Notification times need reduced, lead pipes replaced, OEPA chief says

YOUNGSTOWN

Notification time frames need to be drastically shortened for people whose homes show elevated lead levels in their water, the director of the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency said, as the Sebring water lead emergency appeared to be abating.

There also needs to be a national debate about replacement of lead-service connections and pipes within residences, Craig W. Butler, OEPA director, said Wednesday from his office in Columbus.

Under current federal law, notification time frames are 30 days to the individual homeowner and 60 days where a communitywide notification is required, Butler said.

Those notification time periods need to be reduced nationally to “a few days,” he said.

“The least we can do, I think, is make sure we get them that data as quickly as possible,” he added.

The most beneficial and permanent way to reduce exposure to lead in drinking water would be to replace lead-service connections from the street and to replace pipes and fixtures containing lead within homes over the long term, Butler said.

That is expensive, even at the individual level, Butler conceded.

Read more about the recommendations in Thursday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.