The Syracuse Common Council will vote next Tuesday to spend $25 million to replace 2,790 lead service lines.
If the council votes to approve the measure, it could bond for all $25 million while it awaits a potential reimbursement of up to $22 million, city officials said Wednesday.
Also on the table next Tuesday is a resolution to hire a third party firm to conduct the city’s federally mandated water testing in lead pipes.
Both measures will come in front of the council following renewed calls from public health advocates for the city to get the lead out of the tens of thousands of pipes that deliver drinking water to city homes.
Advocates unveiled on Wednesday a report prepared by Safe Water Engineering, helmed by a consultant involved in uncovering the drinking water crisis in Flint, Michigan. Analyzing city data obtained through public records requests, the engineering consultant alleged that the city failed to follow U.S. Environmental Protection Agency lead testing guidelines in the past 18 months of testing.
The allegations in the report included instances where the city tested homes where there were no lead service lines or where the material of the service line was unknown. The EPA regulations state that testing should occur at homes with a lead service line.
The report, advocates said, shows why the city needs to take swift action replacing the city’s inventory of lead pipes, or lead service lines. There are more than 14,000 lead service lines in Syracuse, with thousands more remaining unidentified.
The next phase of the city’s lead service line project will consist of 2,790 replacements of private service lines, which connect water from the home’s sidewalk to the home’s water meter.
These 2,790 addresses have had their public service line counterparts replaced over the past few years, Water Department Commissioner Robert Brandt told the council Wednesday. That will cost $25 million.
Loh said state officials have told the city $22 million of those costs could be reimbursed, but that the city still needs an official letter from the state to be able to use that in a resolution.
At the city’s current planned pace, it could take five years or longer to replace all the lead pipes in the city.
Councilor Corey Williams said he wants the council to hold a special committee meeting prior to next Tuesday’s council meeting to consider the item.
“It’s a big expenditure,” he said. “I fully believe that we’re gonna move ahead with it. I just want to make sure that we understand what we’re moving ahead with and that the public has a better idea about what we’re doing, because clearly, lead in our water has been a major issue in our community.”
The Safe Water Engineering report findings, advocates say, also raised questions about trust in the city’s testing process.
“We’ve always been told the water’s safe,” said Oceanna Fair, an advocate with Families for Lead Freedom Now, who presented the report at a press event Wednesday. “But these results tell a different story.”
City spokesperson Greg Loh told Central Current Wednesday that the city had not yet had the chance to review the report in full, but that they stood by their reporting data. He said the city’s sampling pool was vetted by the Onondaga County Health Department and State Department of Health.
For Fair and Williams, the move to hire a consultant is a step in the right direction toward restoring some faith in the city’s handling of the issues with water testing. The council will vote on hiring Indiana-based company 120Water to conduct water testing over the next year and stay in compliance with EPA regulations.
Brandt said 120Water has done work in Buffalo and that his department recommended to the mayor to waive the request for proposal process on the contract so that the water department can stay on track with the federal water testing schedule.
Water utilities must report their water testing numbers to the state every six months.
“Typically, some of our communities don’t have a lot of faith or belief in what they hear from the government,” Williams said. “I think that bringing in a third party, independent body to be able to help communicate that message on behalf of the city administration will be really positive.”
To further help residents, Fair said, the city should continue its distribution of filters. The city announced at the end of last year it would be distributing 6,200 EPA-recommended Brita water filters to families with children in the first grade and younger, as well as to households with pregnant women and/or infants present
Loh told Central Current in an email that more than 6,200 filters have been distributed through a partnership with the county and the Syracuse City School District. However, the city and county, Loh noted, have not made any new plans to distribute more filters.
“We will assess the next round of sampling data and consult with state and county health departments,” Loh wrote.
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