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1. How does lead get into people’s drinking water?

Lead in drinking water does not typically come from the water source. Lead in drinking water usually comes from the corrosion of lead-containing plumbing or fixtures, or the solder that connects copper pipes. Lead-based solder was banned in 1986, but small amounts of lead can still be found in many brass plumbing fixtures and can slowly dissolve into water after standing in pipes for a long time. Please call 253-841-5505 for more information.

2. How do high levels of lead in the water affect people?

Studies cited by the Environmental Protection Agency show that exposure to lead can cause health problems, especially in pregnant women and young children. Children are at highest risk of lead exposure from soil, as well as from dust and paint in older homes. The risk is highest in homes constructed before lead-based paint was banned in 1978, and risk increases with the age of the house as a result of deteriorating paint and paint chips. While drinking water isn’t usually a significant source of lead for children, it can contribute to total exposure, and its control is important. Please call 253-841-5505 for more information.

3. What went wrong with the water in Flint, Michigan in 2014 and 2015?

To start, Flint’s water system has many service connections that are made entirely out of lead, which is common among water systems in the eastern U.S. Service connections are the pipes that connect homes to the distribution mains of the water system.

Flint changed water sources in 2014, moving from a Detroit regional water system that provided fully treated water from Lake Huron to a local water supply from the Flint River. The chemistry in the water from the Flint River was much more corrosive than the treated Lake Huron water from Detroit. Without appropriate corrosion control treatment, the water quickly began to dissolve metals such as iron and lead from pipes and fixtures into the drinking water. As a result, the quality of the drinking water provided to customers was significantly impacted. In some cases, lead concentrations were found to be many times higher than drinking water regulations allow. Please call 253-841-5505 for more information.

4. How does Puyallup Water help prevent lead from getting into people’s drinking water?

Springs and wells are the primary source of water for the City of Puyallup. Our average PH is 7.1 to 7.2. Water with a PH in this range is considered to be less corrosive, therefore less lead dissolves into the drinking water. Our construction standards require the use of lead free plumbing. Please call 253-841-5505 for more information.

5. What is Puyallup Water’s process for testing for lead and who sets the rules for that?

The federal Lead and Copper Rule, which was developed by the EPA and is implemented by the Washington State Department of Health, prescribes the minimum number of samples, how sample sites are selected, the process for collecting lead samples in customers’ homes, and what the levels must be below. Puyallup Water currently collects a minimum of 30 samples every 3 years. Sample sites are selected based on what are believed to be the most likely, worst-case sample sites for lead exposure.

The federally acceptable limit of lead in drinking water is 15 parts per billion (ppb) in no more than 10% of collected samples. If more than 10% of samples are above that Lead Action Level, this would trigger the water system to improve its corrosion control treatment and increase the amount of monitoring required. The water system would also have to provide additional information to its customers. Please call 253-841-5505 for more information.

6. When did Puyallup Water start testing for lead and why?

Puyallup Water began collecting lead samples as required by the Lead and Copper Rule in June of 1992. Through 2013, Puyallup has taken approximately 250 lead and copper samples. Please call 253-841-5505 for more information.

7. How does Puyallup Water report lead findings to customers?

The summarized results of the most recent round of lead sampling is including in the annual Water Quality Report (also called a Consumer Confidence Report) that is mailed to all customers each year. Please call 253-841-5505 for more information.

8. Who regulates our water supply?

Puyallup Water and all other public water systems in Washington are regulated by the EPA at the federal level and the Washington State Department of Health at the state level. Rules and regulations for public water systems like Puyallup primarily come from the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act, as well as any additional, more stringent standards set by the Washington State Department of Health. Please call 253-841-5505 for more information.

9. Are those regulations protective enough?

Concerns have been raised in different parts of the country with the required sampling methods used to identify lead in household plumbing, and the fact that up to 10% of the samples collected can be higher than the identified “action level” of 15 parts per billion (ppb). While the rule is intended to target sampling at the worst-case potential houses, and under worst-case conditions, researchers have shown that the prescribed methods don’t always achieve that goal.

That is particularly the case in water systems where service lines connecting the home to the water system are made entirely of lead. We are not aware of any of these types of service lines in the Puyallup system. As we sample again in the summer of 2016, if there are any homes that show lead levels over the 15 ppb action level, we will request to work with those homeowners to try and determine the source, and we will continue to communicate with all customers about the risks of lead, what we are doing to reduce that risk, and what customers can do to help reduce their own risk of exposure. Please call 253-841-5505 for more information.

10. Who oversees trends in our area’s public health or has access to track lead levels in children in our area? What are they reporting?

In Washington, there is no comprehensive, universal requirement for blood lead level monitoring. Blood lead level monitoring that does occur is targeted at those with risk factors for exposure.

Blood lead levels are a reportable result that must be provided by all laboratories to the appropriate state agency that tracks the results. The Washington State Department of Health maintains a registry of blood lead levels for children under the age of 15, and the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries maintains a similar registry for adults.

The current standard for “blood lead level of concern” for children is those with results greater than 5 micrograms per deciliter. Samples above that level of concern will trigger a follow-up investigation. In Pierce County, the follow up is done by staff from the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department.

The data that is collected from blood lead level samples in Washington often does not include addresses of patients, so it is not currently possible to use this data to evaluate trends within a water system’s service area that might be related to drinking water exposure. Please call 253-841-5505 for more information.

11. Are there inherent differences between Flint’s water supply and Puyallup’s water supply?

The water that Flint was using from the Flint River was different in a number of ways from the water Puyallup uses from our groundwater sources. The Flint River runs through a heavy industrial area in Flint, while Puyallup takes its water from aquifers in protected watersheds. The water chemistry is also quite different. With high levels of chlorides, the Flint River supply was found to be quite corrosive to metal pipes and fixtures. Flint, like many systems on the East Coast, also has cases where the pipes that connect houses to the water system are made out of lead.

The most critical difference between Flint and Puyallup was the fact that Flint was not using effective corrosion control treatment for the water from the Flint River. That lack of corrosion control treatment resulted in significant impacts to Flint’s water quality and the increase in lead being absorbed into the drinking water.

Puyallup Water has been operating sources in the same aquifers for 126 years without exceeding any lead levels. Please call 253-841-5505 for more information.

12. If I’m concerned about lead in my water, what can I do?

While Puyallup has a long record of complying with lead level requirements, and the vast majority of results for lead are low, they are not zero. Flushing fixtures in your home prior to using them is one of the easiest and most effective ways to further reduce the risk of exposure to lead in water. Generally, water must sit in contact with plumbing materials and fixtures for a few hours in order for small amounts of lead to enter the drinking water. Running water between 30 seconds and 2 minutes after it sits stagnant in the pipe will reduce any amount of lead that may be present in your water. A change in the temperature of water indicates when fresh water arrives.

It is also recommended to use water from the cold water tap for drinking and food preparation, because warm water can be more corrosive than cold. Cleaning out faucet aerators is a good idea to ensure that any old lead solder debris does not collect there. Please call 253-841-5505 for more information.

13. What homes are at high risk of having lead contamination through the pipes?

Homes that were constructed prior to 1986 with copper plumbing and lead solder, or homes that contain any lead piping, are considered the highest risk. Although use of lead as a plumbing material did occur in some parts of the United States through the early 1900s, to Puyallup Water’s knowledge, little or if any lead pipe was used in the Puyallup area.

If you choose to test your plumbing for lead we have listed a few local drinking water laboratories that are certified by the Washington State Department of Ecology:
Spectra Analytical Inc.
2221 Ross Way
Tacoma, WA 98421
Phone: 253-272-4850

Water Management Laboratories
1515 80th Street E
Tacoma, WA 98404
Phone: 253-531-3121