agency will accept public comments on the proposal for 60 days and will finalize the rule sometime next year .
The plan would affect about 9 million pipes across the country , and could cost $ 20 billion to $ 30 billion , according to The New York Times . It represents the strictest-ever limit on lead in drinking water , but wouldn ’ t ban it entirely : rather , it would lower the allowable amount to 10 parts per billion from the current 15 parts per billion .
Dive Insight :
The heads of Dallas-based contractors AECOM and Jacobs , Montrealheadquartered WSP and other major construction firms have identified water projects as a growing market . Beyond pipe replacement , resilience , flooding , stormwater and other climate changerelated water work is booming , buoyed by the IIJA and other federal spending .
The EPA ’ s lead pipe proposal advances the Lead Pipe and Paint Action Plan , the Biden administration ’ s multi-agency push to reduce all sources of lead exposure .
There is no safe level of exposure to lead , particularly for children , according to the World Health Organization . It can cause irreversible brain and nervous system damage , learning and behavior problems , slow growth and development issues .
The new proposed Lead and Copper Rule Improvements also increase tap water sampling requirements , mandate water systems to complete comprehensive and publicly available lead service line inventories and strengthen requirements for water systems to take additional actions to reduce lead health risks , per the White House press release .
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act designates $ 15 billion to help utilities pay for the upgrades along with $ 11.7 billion in general-purpose funding through the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund that can be used for lead pipe replacement , according to the release . Funding from the American Rescue Plan ’ s $ 350 billion State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund can also be used to replace lead service lines and remediate lead paint .
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