People are being lead poisoned by government malfeasance and then forced to pay to stop these poisonings. That is, the EPA Lead and Copper Rule requires that people pay to replace lead piping in their homes, while government funds pay for lead piping replacements in their homes. 'Maybe as many as 1.2 million children in the US have lead poisoning. We're only treating half of them' (click here).
The EPAs 2021 Lead and Copper Rule has been fraught with technical misconceptions since it was written by Congress. When the law was implemented, water utility companies started replacing customer lead service pipes with plastic pipes in many cases. Utilities were responsible for replacing service lines to the water meter only.
When these new plastic pipes were installed by utilities, lead levels in homes increased, where maximum lead levels for drinking water are specified by law, but there are no known safe levels for lead in drinking water. Lead in drinking water can affect pregnancies, the health of adults, and in children lead decreases learning abilities and in rare cases causes death.
The practice of connecting plastic pipes to lead customer pipes actually increased the lead that was flushed into the drinking water of families and children. The EPA has claimed, and still claims, that pipe replacement 'disturbed' the lead pipes to further poison customers. They are technically incorrect. A process known as water hammer damages a naturally occurring protective coating on lead inside pipes, and then the hammers crack pipes to release more lead into the drinking water. When plastic pipes connect to lead pipes water hammer damage is greater to increase lead in drinking water. Even when, plastic pipe s are nor t being implemented hammers push lead into drinking water. In other words, cities all over the U.S. cause releases of lead into our drinking water, where the Lead and Copper Rule increased this lead poisoning.
Now, the EPAs 2024 Lead and Copper Rule Improvements require cities to replace lead services lines to homes only if the customer agrees to pay to replace their pipes first. The claim is that if the customer does not pay, and a city replaces the service line, then the lead in the pipe is 'disturbed'. Nonsense - there is no disturbance by the lead pipe replacement. The lead is cracked and corroded by subsequent water hammers from the city. Cities create the lead poisoning problem, and 9.2 million customers or 9% of all U.S. customers (click here) - are now required to pay the price!
In short, cities create lead poisoning by water hammering home drinking water pipes, and lead poisoning occurs all over our country (The Drinking Water Disease Spree; Aiken S.C. is Ground-Zero and Aiken, S.C. + Drinking Water = Brown Water + Parallel Health Hazards).. Pipes are being replaced to protect some of us. Others are forced to keep drinking water that can cause brain damage to their children. The facts are that local governments all over this country are improperly operating their water systems to create water hammers that accelerate the introduction of lead into our drinking water. Proper operations of city water systems can stop the poisonings.
Communications
The following letter was sent to the Aiken mayor, the city manager, and city council members when this Op Ed was published.
Lead Poisoning in Aiken(8/23/2025)
Although you are part of a national travesty, you had the choice to curtail lead poisoning in Aiken drinking water. I cannot fathom why you fail to improve public health. Please see "The EPA Bullies Us to Pay to Stop City Governments from Lead Poisoning Our Children and Families".
Robert A. Leishear, PhD, PE, ASME Fellow
Leishear Engineering, LLC
The following letter was sent to the EPA when this Op Ed was published.
The EPA Endangers People Through Lead Poisoning (8/23/2025)
The Lead and Copper Ruleshave serious flaws that endanger public health. See "The EPA Bullies Us to Pay to Stop City Governments from Lead Poisoning Our Children and Families".
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