City of Blaine to remedy lead pipes in next decade

The city of Blaine is taking inventory of over 1,700 pipes made from unknown materials as part of a federal mandate requiring lead pipes to be replaced within the next decade.

Blaine Public Works Department’s Steve Hrutfiord and Manroop Kaur presented the project to Blaine City Council during its November 25 meeting.

“Our water does not have a high pH. It does not react to metals which was the case in Flint, Michigan,” said Hrutfiord, a water foreman. “They went from a higher pH water to a lower pH, and it started attacking the pipes. We don’t have that here.”

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has mandated all water systems in the U.S. remove lead from drinking water. To comply, Blaine public works was required to complete an initial lead service line inventory by October 16 in which staff reviewed records of service lines and their construction dates to the Whatcom County Tax Assessor’s database.

Through the initial inventory, the city was able to identify 1,457 lines as not containing lead and 1,729 lines as unknown.

“Unknown means further data research or field investigations are required to make a final determination,” said Kaur, a project manager. “Unknown category does not mean they are confirmed lead.”

Public works has sent letters to homeowners with unknown pipes.

Public works anticipates it taking through 2027 to identify the unknown pipes. The city will apply for state and federal grants to fund removing lead from drinking water by the end of October 2034.

“We will continue our work with consultants to do additional data research so we can refine our inventory,” Kaur said. “As needed, field investigations will be done so we can remove all unknowns from our inventory and have a determination whether they’re non-lead or lead.”

Hrutfiord said every three years since 1999, the city selects 20 older homes to test plumbing.

“We’ve never had a single exceedance for lead or copper,” Hrutfiord said.

When councilmember Sonia Hurt asked how much of the replacement would be a homeowner’s responsibility, Kaur said the EPA has been requested to provide clearer language, and right now the city would cover all costs of the replacement.

However, city manager Mike Harmon said the service line from the meter to the house is the homeowner’s responsibility as it typically has been, unless the EPA makes a final determination saying otherwise.

If a resident wants to get their water tested, Kaur said the city would recommend they contact Edge Analytical Laboratories because the city can only test a certain number of samples as it follows a strict criteria.

Lead exposure in drinking water can cause decreased IQ and attention span in children, and health effects in children whose mothers were exposed before or during pregnancy, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It can also cause negative impacts in adults such as heart disease, high blood pressure and problems with the kidney or nervous system.

Those concerned about reducing lead in drinking water can use filters, cold water and clean their faucet’s screen.