Witness Testimony
Mr. John Stephenson
Director
Natural Resources and Environment Team United States General Accounting Office 441 G Street, N.W.
Washington, DC, 20548
Tapped Out? Lead in the District of Columbia and the Providing of Safe Drinking Water
Subcommittee on Environment and Hazardous Materials
July 22, 2004
09:30 AM
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee:
Thank you for the opportunity to discuss our work to date on the issues
surrounding elevated levels of lead in Washington, D.C. drinking water. At
the request of this Subcommittee, we are examining issues concerning
lead in drinking water generally and the situation in Washington, D.C., in
particular. Our testimony today lays out our preliminary observations on
these issues and highlights areas of further examination.
Although rarely the sole cause of lead poisoning, lead in drinking water
can significantly increase a person's total lead exposure. EPA estimates
that drinking water is the source of about 20 percent of Americans' lead
exposure, but that it may be as high as 60 percent for infants who drink
baby formulas and concentrated juices that are mixed with water. Adults
who drink water with high lead concentrations could develop kidney
problems or high blood pressure. Developing fetuses, infants and young
children are more vulnerable to lead from all sources, including drinking
water. Their exposure to lead may delay their physical or mental
development.
The delivery of safe water to residents requires that water systems and
regulators work cooperatively in fulfilling the requirements of the Safe
Drinking Water Act. In most cases, states have primary oversight and
enforcement authority under the Act. Lead in drinking water is regulated
under the Act's 1991 Lead and Copper Rule. The rule requires water
systems to treat their water to limit its corrosiveness, monitor tap water
samples for evidence of elevated levels of lead, and report this information
to their state. In addition, drinking water systems may consult with state
health agencies when communicating with their customers about health
risks from drinking water.
The relationship between regulators and water systems is more
complicated in the District of Columbia, where the Washington Aqueduct,
owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, draws and treats water from
the Potomac River. The Aqueduct sells the treated water to the District of
Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (WASA), which distributes it to
District residents. The Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA)
Region III Office in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, has primary oversight and
enforcement authority for the District's public water systems. The District
of Columbia's Department of Health, while having no formal role under
the Safe Drinking Water Act, is responsible for educating District residents
on potential health risks.
In the District, the Washington Aqueduct treats drinking water and
monitors for most contaminants, while WASA monitors tap water samples
for lead and reports these results to EPA's Philadelphia Office. Tap water
monitoring is important because, unlike most drinking water
contaminants, lead is not generally introduced to drinking water supplies
from source water. Rather, lead leaches into drinking water as it travels
through lead service pipes, over pipe joints connected with lead-based
solder, and through brass plumbing fixtures that contain lead. According
to EPA, its Philadelphia Office is responsible for providing technical
assistance to the Aqueduct and WASA on how to comply with federal
regulations; ensuring that they report the monitoring results to EPA by
required deadlines; taking enforcement actions if violations occur; and
using those enforcement actions to return the water systems to
compliance in a timely fashion.
Significant concerns were raised in early 2004 about how federal and local
agencies were carrying out their responsibilities under the Safe Drinking
Water Act. At that time, the local media reported that a number of tap
water samples showed elevated levels of lead.
You asked that we (1) examine the current structure and level of
coordination among key government entities that implement the Safe
Drinking Water Act's regulations for lead in the District of Columbia, and
identify any improvements to increase efficiency and accountability, (2)
determine how other drinking water systems that exceeded the EPA
action level for lead have conducted public notification and outreach, (3)
assess the availability of data necessary to determine which adult and
child populations are at greatest risk of exposure to elevated lead levels,
and what information WASA is gathering to help track their health, (4)
evaluate the state of research on lead exposure, and how this information
could help inform other drinking water utilities of potential problems in
their systems.
To respond to these questions, we are interviewing key officials and staff
with the federal and local agencies responsible for managing drinking
water and monitoring health for lead exposure in Washington, D.C.,
including officials at EPA's headquarters and in its Philadelphia Office,
WASA, the Washington Aqueduct, and the D.C. Department of Health. We
are also (1) reviewing records documenting key activities and interactions
among these agencies, and examining their current responses to the lead
problem, (2) contacting academic and non-governmental experts in lead
contamination, and (3) examining how other water systems facing similar
circumstances notified and educated their customers on lead health risks,
and how they interacted with federal, state, and local agencies to respond
to the problem. Many of the facts and circumstances surrounding the
District's lead controversy are the subject of active litigation. Accordingly,
we do not take a position on these issues and on how they bear on the
question of interagency coordination and communication, and instead
report them only as stated by the affected parties.
We are here to present our preliminary observations on these issues. We
will report our final findings and any recommendations we may develop at
a later date. In summary:
Providing safe drinking water requires that water systems, regulators, and
public health agencies fulfill individual roles, yet work together in a
coordinated fashion. It is particularly important that these entities report
and communicate information to each other in a timely and accurate
manner. Recent public statements and corrective actions by the
responsible entities, particularly EPA and WASA, clearly indicate that
coordination could have been better in the years preceding the current
controversy. As our work continues, we will seek to examine (to the
extent appropriate) specific ways in which improved coordination
between EPA and WASA could help both agencies better fulfill their
responsibilities. We will also examine interrelationships among other key
agencies (such as the Aqueduct and the D.C. Department of Health); how
other water systems in similar situations interacted with federal, state, and
local agencies; and what the experiences of these other jurisdictions may
suggest concerning how improved coordination can better protect
drinking water in the District of Columbia.
- Other water systems facing elevated lead levels used public notification
and education practices that appear to offer lessons for conducting
outreach to water customers, including those in the District of Columbia.
For example, some of the practices of the two systems we have begun to
examine-the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority and the Portland
Water Bureau-include tailoring their communications to varied
audiences in their service areas, testing the effectiveness of their
communication materials, and linking demographic and infrastructure
data to identify populations at greatest risk from lead in drinking water.
- WASA faces challenges in collecting the information needed to identify
District citizens at greatest risk from lead in drinking water. Specifically, it
has partial information on which of its customers have lead service pipes,
although it is currently in the process of obtaining more complete
information. In our future work, we will examine the efforts of other water
systems to go one step further by linking data on at-risk populations (such
as pregnant mothers, infants, and small children) with data on homes
suspected of being served by lead service pipes and other plumbing
fixtures that may leach lead into drinking water.
- Much is known about the hazards of lead in the human body and about
how lead from paint, soil, and dust enter the body. However, little research
has been done to determine actual lead exposure from drinking water, and
the information that does exist is dated. In our future work, we will
examine the plans of EPA and other organizations to fill this key
information gap.
Background
Lead is unusual among drinking water contaminants in that it seldom
occurs naturally in source water supplies like rivers and lakes. Rather,
lead enters drinking water primarily as a result of the corrosion of
materials containing lead in the water distribution system and in
household plumbing. These materials include lead service pipes that
connect a house to the water main, household lead-based solder used to
join copper pipe, and brass plumbing fixtures such as faucets.
The Safe Drinking Water Act is the key federal law protecting public water
supplies from harmful contaminants. The Act established a federal-state
arrangement in which states may be delegated primary implementation
and enforcement authority ("primacy") for the drinking water program.
Except for Wyoming and the District of Columbia, all states and territories
have received primacy. For contaminants that are known or anticipated to
occur in public water systems and that the EPA Administrator determines
may have an adverse impact on health, the Act requires EPA to set a non-
enforceable maximum contaminant level goal (MCLG) at which no known
or anticipated adverse health effects occur and that allows an adequate
margin of safety. Once the MCLG is established, EPA sets an enforceable
standard for water as it leaves the treatment plant, the maximum
contaminant level (MCL). The MCL generally must be set as close to the
MCLG as is "feasible" using the best technology or other means available,
taking costs into consideration.
The fact that lead contamination occurs after water leaves the treatment
plant has complicated efforts to regulate it in the same way as most
contaminants. In 1975, EPA set an interim MCL for lead at 50 parts per
billion (ppb), but did not require sampling of tap water to show
compliance with the standard. Rather, the standard had to be met at the
water system before the water was distributed. The 1986 amendments to
the Act directed EPA to issue a new lead regulation, and in 1991, EPA
adopted the Lead and Copper Rule.
Instead of an MCL, the rule established an "action level" of 15 ppb for lead
in drinking water, and required that water systems take steps to limit the
corrosiveness of their water. Under the rule, the action level is exceeded if
lead levels are higher than 15 ppb in over 10 percent of tap water samples
taken. Large systems, including WASA, generally must take at least 100 tap
water samples in a 6-month monitoring period. Large systems that do not
exceed the action level or that maintain optimal corrosion control for two
consecutive 6-month periods may reduce the number of sampling sites to
50 sites and reduce collection frequency to once per year. If a water
system exceeds the action level, other regulatory requirements are
triggered. The water system must intensify tap water sampling, take
additional actions to control corrosion, and educate the public about steps
they should take to protect themselves from lead exposure. If the problem
is not abated, the water system must annually replace 7 percent of the lead
service lines under its ownership.
The public notification requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act are
intended to protect public health, build trust with consumers through open
and honest sharing of information, and establish an ongoing, positive
relationship with the community. While public notification provisions
were included in the original Act, concerns have been raised for many
years about the way public water systems notify the public regarding
health threats posed by contaminated drinking water. In 1992, for
example, we reported, among other things, that (1) there were high rates
of noncompliance among water systems with the public notification
regulations in effect at that time and (2) notices often did not clearly
convey the appropriate information to the public concerning the health
risks associated with a violation and the preventive action to be taken.
The 1996 Amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act attempted to
address many of these concerns by requiring that consumers of public
water supplies be given more accurate and timely information about
violations and that this information be in a form that is more
understandable and useful.
Drinking water is provided to District of Columbia residents under a
unique organizational structure:
- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Washington Aqueduct draws water
from the Potomac River and filters and chemically treats it to meet EPA
specifications. The Aqueduct produces drinking water for approximately 1
million citizens living, working, or visiting in the District of Columbia,
Arlington County, Virginia, and the City of Falls Church, Virginia. Managed
by the Corps of Engineers' Baltimore District, the Aqueduct is a federally
owned and operated public water supply agency that produces an average
of 180 million gallons of water per day at two treatment plants located in
the District. All funding for operations, maintenance, and capital
improvements comes from revenue generated by selling drinking water to
the District of Columbia, Arlington County, Virginia, and the City of Falls
Church, Virginia.
- The District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority buys its drinking
water from the Aqueduct. WASA distributes drinking water through 1,300
miles of water mains under the streets of the District to individual homes
and buildings, as well as to several federal facilities directly across the
Potomac River in Virginia. From its inception in 1938 until 1996, WASA's
predecessor, the District of Columbia Water and Sewer Utility
Administration, was a part of the District's government. In 1996, WASA
was established by District of Columbia law as a semiautonomous regional
entity. WASA develops its own budget, which is incorporated into the
District's budget and then forwarded to Congress. All funding for
operations, improvements, and debt financing come from usage fees, EPA
grants, and the sale of revenue bonds.
- EPA's Philadelphia Regional Office has primary oversight and
enforcement responsibility for public water systems in the District.
According to EPA, the Regional Office's oversight and enforcement
responsibilities include providing technical assistance to the water
suppliers on how to comply with federal regulations; ensuring that the
suppliers report the monitoring results to EPA by the required deadlines;
taking enforcement actions if violations occur; and using those
enforcement actions to return the system to compliance in a timely
fashion.
- The District's Department of Health, while having no formal role under
the Act, is responsible for identifying health risks and educating the public
on those risks.
Coordination Among
Agencies Is Critical To
Ensure Safe Drinking
Water
Providing safe drinking water requires that water systems, regulators, and
public health agencies fulfill individual responsibilities yet work together
in a coordinated fashion. It is particularly important that these entities
report and communicate information to each other in a timely and
accurate manner. In the case of drinking water in the District of Columbia,
one of the key relationships is the one between WASA, the deliverer of
water to District customers, and EPA's Philadelphia Office, the regulator
charged with overseeing WASA's compliance with drinking water
regulations. Of particular note, one of WASA's key obligations is to
monitor the water it supplies to District customers through a tap water
sampling program, and to report these results accurately and in a timely
manner to EPA's Philadelphia Office. As EPA itself has noted, one of the
Philadelphia Office's key obligations is to ensure that WASA understands
the reporting requirements and reports monitoring results by required
deadlines.
It is noteworthy that WASA and EPA have taken or agreed to take steps
that are clearly intended to improve communication and coordination
between the agencies. For example:
- Under the Consent Order signed by EPA and WASA on June 17, 2004,
WASA agreed to improve its format for reporting tap water samples by
ensuring that the reports include tap water sample identification numbers,
sample date and location, lead and copper concentration, service line
materials, and reasons for any deviation from previously sampled
locations. The monitoring reports are also to include the laboratory data
sheets, which contain the raw test data recorded directly by the
laboratory. Under the Order, WASA also agreed to submit to EPA for
comment a plan and schedule for enhanced information, database
management, and reporting. The plan is to describe how monitoring
reports will be generated, maintained, and submitted to EPA in a timely
fashion.
- EPA's Philadelphia Office has altered the way in which it will handle
compliance data from WASA and the Washington Aqueduct. According to
the office, compliance data from both water systems will now be sent to
those in the Office responsible for enforcing the Safe Drinking Water Act,
so as to separate the enforcement/compliance assurance function from the
municipal assistance function.
Aside from the tap water monitoring issue, EPA's Philadelphia Office
acknowledges that its oversight of WASA public notification and education
efforts could have been better, noting that "In hindsight, EPA should have
asked more questions about the extent, coverage and impact of DC
WASA's public education program, and reacted to fill the public education
gaps where they were evident." To address the problem, the Philadelphia
Office reported on its website that it will have to make some
improvements in the way it exercises its own oversight responsibilities.
Suggested improvements include obtaining written agreement from WASA
to receive drafts of education materials and a timeline for their
submission, reviewing drafts of public education materials for compliance
with requirements, as well as effectiveness of materials and delivery, and
acquiring outside expertise to assist in evaluating outreach efforts.
As our work continues, we will seek to examine (to the extent it does not
conflict with active litigation) other ways in which improved coordination
between WASA and EPA could help both agencies better fulfill their
responsibilities. We will also examine interrelationships that include other
key agencies, such as the Aqueduct and the D.C. Department of Health. We
will also examine how other water systems in similar situations interacted
with federal, state, and local agencies. These experiences may offer
suggestions on how coordination can be improved among the agencies
responsible for protecting drinking water in the District of Columbia.
Experiences of Other
Water Systems
Highlight Effective
Ways to Inform and
Educate the Public
WASA is not the first system to exceed the action level for lead. According
to EPA, when the first round of monitoring results was completed for large
water systems in 1991 pursuant to the Lead and Copper Rule, 130 of the
660 systems serving populations over 50,000 exceeded the action level for
lead. EPA data show that since the monitoring period ending in 2000, 27
such systems have exceeded the action level. As part of our work, we will
be examining the innovative approaches some of these systems have used
to notify and educate their customers. I would like to touch on the
activities of two such systems, the Massachusetts Water Resources
Authority and the Portland, Oregon, Water Bureau. Each of these systems
has employed effective notification practices in recent years that may
provide insights into how WASA, and other water systems, could improve
their own practices.
Massachusetts Water
Resources Authority
The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) is the wholesale
water provider for approximately 2.3 million customers, mostly in the
metropolitan Boston area. Under an agreement with the Massachusetts
Department of Environmental Protection, monitoring for lead under the
Lead and Copper Rule occurs in each of the communities that MWRA
serves and the results are submitted together. Initial system-wide tap
water monitoring results in 1992 showed a 90th percentile lead
concentration of 71 ppb (meaning 10 percent of its samples scored at this
level and above). According to MWRA, adjustments in corrosion control
have led to a reduction in lead levels, but the 90th percentile lead
concentration in MWRA's service area has still been above the action level
in four of the seven sampling events since early 2000.
According to an MWRA official, the public education program for lead in
drinking water is designed to ensure that all potentially affected parties
within MWRA's service area receive information about lead in drinking
water. He noted, for example, that while the Lead and Copper Rule
requires that information be sent to consumers in their water bills, the
large population of renters living in MWRA's service area often do not
receive water bills. Therefore, MWRA included information about lead in
its consumer confidence report, which is sent to all mailing addresses
within the service area. Additionally, MWRA uses public service
announcements, interviews on radio and television talk shows,
appearances at city councils and other local government agency meetings,
and articles in local newspapers to convey information. MWRA also
conducted focus groups to judge the effectiveness of the public education
program and continually makes changes to refine the information about
lead in drinking water.
An MWRA official also noted that MWRA focuses portions of its lead
public education program on the populations most vulnerable to the
health effects of lead exposure. For example, MWRA worked with officials
from the Massachusetts Women, Infants and Children Supplemental
Nutrition Program (WIC) to design a brochure to help parents understand
how to protect their children from lead in drinking water. Among other
things, the brochure includes the pertinent information in several foreign
languages, including Spanish, Portuguese, and Vietnamese. The WIC
program also includes information on how to avoid lead hazards when
preparing formula.
Portland Water Bureau
The Portland Water Bureau provides drinking water to approximately
787,000 people in the Portland metropolitan area, nearly one-fourth of the
population of Oregon. Since 1997, the city has exceeded the lead action
level 6 times in 14 rounds of monitoring. According to Bureau officials, the
problem stems mainly from lead solder used to join copper plumbing and
from lead in home faucets. Portland's system has never had lead service
lines, and the Water Bureau finished removing all lead fittings within the
water system's control in 1998.
The Portland Water Bureau sought flexibility in complying with the Lead
and Copper Rule. The state of Oregon allowed the Water Bureau to
implement a lead hazard reduction program as a substitute for the optimal
corrosion control treatment requirement of the Lead and Copper Rule.
Portland's lead hazard reduction program is a partnership between the
Portland Water Bureau, the Multnomah County and Oregon State health
departments, and community groups. According to Portland Water Bureau
officials, the program consists of four components: (1) water treatment for
corrosion control; (2) free water testing to identify customers who may be
at significant risk from elevated lead levels in drinking water; (3) a home
lead hazard reduction program to prevent children from being exposed to
lead from lead-based paint, dust, and other sources; and (4) education on
how to prevent lead exposure targeted to those at greatest risk from
exposure.
As the components suggest, the program is focused on reducing exposure
to lead through all exposure pathways, not just through drinking water.
For example, the Water Bureau provides funding to the Multnomah
County Health Department's LeadLine-a phone hotline that residents can
call to get information about all types of lead hazards. Callers can get
information about how to flush their plumbing to reduce their lead
exposure and can request a lead sampling kit to determine the lead
concentration in the drinking water in their home. The Water Bureau also
provides funding for lead education materials provided to new parents in
hospitals, for billboards and movie advertisements targeted to
neighborhoods with older housing stock, and to the Community Alliance
of Tenants to educate renters on potential lead hazards. Each of these
materials directs people to call the LeadLine if they need additional
information about any lead hazard. The Water Bureau evaluates the results
of the program by tracking the number of calls to the LeadLine, and by
surveying program participants to determine their satisfaction with the
program and the extent to which the program changed their behavior.
In January 2004, the Portland Water Bureau sent a targeted mailing to
those residents most likely to be affected by lead in drinking water. The
mailing targeted homes of an age most likely to contain lead-leaching
solder where a child 6 years old or younger lived. Approximately 2,600
postcards were sent that encouraged residents to get their water tested for
lead, learn about childhood blood lead screening, and reduce lead hazards
in their homes. Water Bureau officials said that they obtained the
information needed to target the mailing from a commercial marketing
company, and that the commercial information was inexpensive and easy
to obtain.
WASA Faces
Challenges in
Identifying At-Risk
Populations
In an ideal world, a water utility such as WASA would have several
different types of information that would allow it to monitor the health of
individuals most susceptible to the health effects of lead in drinking water.
The utility would know the location of all lead service lines and homes
with leaded plumbing (pipes, solder and/or fixtures) within its service
area. The utility would also know the demographics of the residents of
each of these homes. With this information, the utility could identify each
pregnant woman or child six years old or younger who would be most
likely to be exposed to lead through drinking water. These individuals
could then be educated about how to avoid lead exposure, and lead
exposure for each of these individuals could then be monitored through
water testing and blood lead testing.
Unfortunately, WASA and other drinking water utilities do not operate in
an ideal world. WASA does have some information on the location of lead
service lines within its distribution area. Its predecessor developed an
inventory of lead service lines in its distribution system in 1990 as part of
an effort to identify sampling locations to comply with the Lead and
Copper Rule. According to WASA officials, identifying the locations of lead
service lines was difficult because many of the records were nearly 100
years old and some of the information was incomplete. According to this
1990 inventory, there were approximately 22,000 lead service lines. WASA
updated the inventory in September 2003, and estimated that it had 23,071
"known or suspected" lead service lines. WASA subsequently identified an
additional 27,495 service lines in the distribution system made of
"unknown" materials. Consequently, there is some uncertainty over the
actual number and location of the lead service lines in WASA's distribution
system. The administrative order that EPA issued in June 2004 requires
WASA to further update its inventory of lead service lines.
Regardless of the information WASA has about the location of lead service
lines, according to WASA officials, WASA has little information about the
location of customers who are particularly vulnerable to the effects of
lead. The District's Department of Health is responsible for monitoring
blood lead levels for children in the District. Officials from the Department
of Health told us that they maintain a database of the results of all
childhood blood lead testing in the District, and have studied the
distribution of blood lead levels in children on a neighborhood basis.
However, according to a joint study by the D.C. Department of Health and
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published in March
2004, it is difficult to discern any effect of lead in drinking water on
children's blood lead levels because the older homes most likely to have
lead service lines are also those most likely to have other lead hazards,
such as lead in paint and dust. This joint study also described efforts by
the Department of Health and the United States Public Health Service to
conduct blood lead monitoring for residents of homes whose drinking
water test indicated a lead concentration greater than 300 ppb. None of the
201 residents tested were found to have blood lead levels exceeding the
levels of concern for adults or children, as appropriate.
Researchers Face
Gaps in Knowledge
Regarding the Risks
Posed by Lead in
Drinking Water
A good deal of research has been conducted on the health effects of lead,
in particular on the effects associated with certain pathways of
contamination, such as ingestion of leaded paint and inhalation of leaded
dust. In contrast, the most relevant studies on the isolated health effects of
lead in drinking water date back nearly 20 years-including the Glasgow
Duplicate Diet Study on lead levels in children upon which the Lead and
Copper Rule is partially based. According to recent medical literature and
the public health experts we contacted, the key uncertainties requiring
clarification include the incremental effects of lead-contaminated drinking
water on people whose blood lead levels are already elevated from other
sources of lead contamination and the potential health effects of exposure
to low levels of lead. As we continue our work, we will examine the plans
of EPA and other organizations to fill these and other key information
gaps.
Lead is a naturally occurring element that, according to numerous studies,
can be harmful to humans when ingested or inhaled, particularly to
pregnant and nursing women and children aged six or younger. In
children, for example, lead poisoning has been documented as causing
brain damage, mental retardation, behavioral problems, anemia, liver and
kidney damage, hearing loss, hyperactivity, and other physical and mental
problems. Exposure to lead may also be associated with diminished
school performance, reduced scores on standardized IQ tests,
schizophrenia, and delayed puberty.
Long-term exposure may also have serious effects on adults. Lead
ingestion accumulates in bones, where it may remain for decades.
However, stored lead can be mobilized during pregnancy and passed to
the fetus. Other health effects in adults that may be associated with lead
exposure include irritability, poor muscle coordination and nerve damage,
increased blood pressure, impaired hearing and vision, and reproductive
problems.
There are many sources of lead exposure besides drinking water,
including the ingestion of soil, paint chips and dust; inhalation of lead
particles in soil or dust in air; and ingestion of foods that contain lead from
soil or water. Extensive literature is available on the health impacts of lead
exposure, particularly from contaminated air and dust. CDC identified in a
December 2002 Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report the sources of
lead exposure for adults and their potential health effects. In a September
2003 Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, CDC identified the most
prevalent sources of lead in the environment for children, and correlated
high blood lead levels in children with race, sex, and income bracket. The
surveys suggest that Hispanic and African-American children are at
highest risk for lead poisoning, as well as those individuals who are
recipients of Medicaid. Dust and soil contaminated by leaded paint were
documented as the major sources of lead exposure. Children and adults
living in housing built before 1950 are more likely to be exposed to lead
paint and dust and may therefore have higher blood lead levels.
Articles in numerous journals have reported on the physical and
neurological health effects on children of lead in paint, soil, and dust. The
New England Journal of Medicine published an article in April 2003 that
associated environmental lead exposure with decreased growth and
delayed puberty in girls. In 2000, the Journal of Public Health Medicine
examined the implications of lead-contaminated soil, its effect on produce,
and its potential health effects on consumers. Lead can also enter
children's homes if other residents are employed in lead contaminated
workplaces. In 2000, Occupational Medicine found that children of
individuals exposed to lead in the workplace were at higher risk for
elevated blood lead levels. The EPA has aided in some similar research
through the use of its Integrated Exposure Uptake Biokinetic Model for
Lead in Children (IEUBK). This model predicts blood lead concentrations
for children exposed to different types of lead sources.
According to a number of public health experts, drinking water
contributes a relatively minor amount to overall lead exposure in
comparison to other sources. However, while lead in drinking water is
rarely thought to be the sole cause of lead poisoning, it can significantly
increase a person's total lead exposure-particularly for infants who drink
baby formulas or concentrated juices that are mixed with water from
homes with lead service lines or plumbing systems. For children with high
levels of lead exposure from paint, soil, and dust, drinking water is thought
to contribute a much lower proportion of total exposure. For residents of
dwellings with lead solder or lead service lines, however, drinking water
could be the primary source of exposure. As exposure declines from
sources of lead other than drinking water, such as gasoline and soldered
food cans, drinking water will account for a larger proportion of total
intake. Thus, according to EPA, the total drinking water contribution to
overall lead levels may range from as little as 5 percent to more than 50
percent of a child's total lead exposure.
Mr. Chairman, this completes my prepared statement. I would be happy to
respond to any questions you or other Members of this Subcommittee may
have at this time.
Contact and
Acknowledgments
For further information, please contact John B. Stephenson at (202) 512-
3841. Individuals making key contributions to this testimony included
Steve Elstein, Samantha Gross, Karen Keegan, Jessica Marfurt, and Tim
Minelli.
(360455)
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42 U.S.C. 300f-300j.
40 C.F.R. pt. 141, subpart I. The Lead and Copper Rule established an action level of 15
parts per billion (ppb) for lead in drinking water. Under the rule, the action level is
exceeded if lead levels are higher than 15 ppb in over 10 percent of tap water samples
taken. For each monitoring period, a system must report the lead level at the 90th
percentile of homes monitored. For example, if a system monitors 100 homes, it sorts its
results from the lowest to the highest concentrations and reports the concentration it
observed in the 90th sample.
Public Notification Handbook, EPA Office of Water (EPA 816-R-00-010, June 2000).
U.S. General Accounting Office, Drinking Water: Consumers Often Not Well-Informed of
Potentially Serious Violations, GAO/RCED-92-135 (Washington, D.C. June 1992).
Letter from William C. Early, Regional Counsel, EPA Region III, to Eric H. Holder, Jr.,
Covington & Burling (June 25, 2004) attaching EPA's Response to May 13, 2004, letter from
Covington & Burling, Response #26.
http://www.epa.gov/dclead/pep_recommendations.htm.
EPA Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water, Summary: Lead action level
exceedences for medium (3,300-50,000) and large (>50,000) public water systems
(Updated as of June 1, 2004).
Lacey R.F., et al. Lead in Water, Infant Diet and Blood: The Glasgow Duplicate Diet Study.
The Science of the Total Environment, 41 (1985) 235-257.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report:
Adult Blood Lead Epidemiology and Surveillance - United States 1998-2001. 13
December 2002.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report:
Surveillance for Elevated Blood Lead Levels Among Children - United States 1997-2001.
12 September 2003.
Sherry G. Selevan, Deborah C. Rice, Karen A. Hogan, Susan Y. Euling, et al. "Blood lead
concentration and delayed puberty in girls." The New England Journal of Medicine.
Boston: Apr 17, 2003. Vol. 348, Iss. 16; pp. 1527-1536.
Prasad LR, Nazareth B. "Contamination of Allotment Soil with Lead: Managing Potential
Risks to Health." Journal of Public Health Medicine. 22(4) December 2000: 525-30.
Chan, J, et al. "Predictors of Lead Absorption in Children of Lead Workers." Occupational
Medicine. Vol 50, Issue 6, 398-405, 2000.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The IEUBK Model
http:www.opa.gov/superfund/programs/lead/ieubk.htm 16 April 2004.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Lead and Copper Rule. The Federal Register. Vol.
56 NO. 110, 7 June 1991.
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