A new study on the return on investment of replacing all lead water service lines in Michigan is underway led by Michigan State University pediatrician Mona Hanna-Attisha.
The study will develop a detailed analysis of the costs and benefits of replacing all 460,000 lead service lines by 2041.
Hanna-Attisha was instrumental in calling attention to the serious problem of lead in drinking water in Flint during the summer of 2015. High levels of lead were being found in the Flint public water supply. She and other researchers began studying blood tests of children and found high levels of lead in more than 9,000 children ages 6 and younger.
"We all know that lead is a potent poison with no safe level. Yet for too many Michigan children, lead service lines are the straw that delivers their drinking water," said Hanna-Attisha, associate professor of pediatrics and human development at MSU College of Human Medicine.
"This research will add the economic benefits of lead service line replacement to the already well-established health and development benefits of lead elimination and will hopefully serve to more swiftly and thoroughly implement the Michigan Lead and Copper Rule," she said.
The analysis also will include a multi-disciplinary team of health experts and economists from Michigan State, Hurley Children's Hospital's Pediatric Public Health Initiative, Safe Water Engineering and Altarum Institute, Hanna-Attisha said. The new study is being funded by the C.S. Mott Foundation and will be completed in spring 2020.
In 2017, Altarum conducted an initial study for the Pew Charitable Trusts that included a national cost-benefit analysis of various policies to prevent and respond to childhood lead exposure, including removing leaded drinking water service lines. The analysis showed that targeted removal of household lead water service lines nationwide could provide long-term economic returns that exceed the costs of replacing the lines.
The new lead study will assess the 2018 Michigan Lead and Copper Rule, provide a more detailed economic assessment of comprehensive lead service line replacement in Michigan, and inform plans to most optimally replace the state's lead service lines.
"Some have argued that the cost of replacing lead service lines is too high, but the data tell us the opposite: the cost of not replacing them is much higher," said George Miller, a research fellow at Altarum, in a statement. "Our research will provide even more detailed estimates of the long-term economic benefits of lead service line replacement for Michigan that policymakers can use to ensure future generations are protected against lead exposure."
Earlier this year, Altarum released a second study, looking at Michigan, that found the costs and economic benefits of replacing 18,700 lead service lines in one year, about 4 percent of the 460,000 total. In the limited study, targeted lead service line replacement in Michigan was found to provide a net economic benefit of more than $48 million and yield a return of $1.40 per dollar invested.
In an interview Friday with Crain's, Hanna-Attisha said the new study will build on the previous two studies but give Michigan a 20-year look at the cost-benefits of replacing all its lead service lines based on the state's newly approved Lead and Copper Rule, the most stringent law in the country. It mandates improved lead in water testing, creation of lead service line inventories, replacement of lead pipes, and improved public notification, she said.
Hanna-Attisha said the rule has already resulted in dozens of Michigan's more than 300 municipal water systems to test lead in their water. Many cities, including Birmingham and Royal Oak, have found concerning levels of lead in their drinking water.
"Now that water utilities throughout the state are implementing the new sampling requirements, they are finding higher lead levels in the water," said Elin Betanzo, a water quality expert at Safe Water Engineering, in a statement. "This demonstrates the importance of identifying and removing lead service lines as required in the new rule." Current estimates put the total number of lead service lines in Michigan at 460,000.
Hanna-Attisha said Birmingham recently found lead in its water pipes. "They said they can't afford (to replace the pipes). If Birmingham can't afford it, we really need to have this data at the state level" to create an integrated solution, she said.
But Hanna-Attisha said while state policymakers consider how to pay for lead pipe replacements, people can take action at home, as did the residents of Flint.
"The sampling in many cities has found problems, but nowhere near as bad as Flint was. The water is not safe. The EPA says there is no safe level of lead. Zero parts per billion is safe," she said. "The lesson Flint taught us is we were never intended to get lead-free water until we replace our lead pipes."
For now, Hanna-Attisha recommends everyone who has lead pipe water service lines install filters on their water systems and flush water from the pipes regularly.
So far, the cities of Lansing and Madison, Wis., have replaced all their lead service pipes. She said Flint will have its water pipes replaced in a few months.
"Detroit has the most lead lines in the state. They are being proactive and replacing 6,000 lead lines per year," Hanna-Attisha said. "It is amazing. One of the most cash-strapped communities in the state, and see what they are doing."
One regret Hanna-Attisha has herself is that she didn't know more about lead pipes when her two children were younger. They are now ages 11 and 13.
"We lived in an older home when my babies young. I used to make noodles all the time with tap water. I never should have done that," she said. "(People) should know this. This was decades in the making."
In the long run, Hanna-Attisha said replacing lead pipes is critical and well worth the costs.
"We have an awesome lead and copper rule in Michigan that is requiring cities to test their lead pipes," she said. "Maybe it is best not to have lead pipes in Michigan that deliver neurotoxins in our drinking waters."
The 2017 Altarum study found that if "we eliminated lead from pipes and from the soil we could save $80 billion in one year," said Hanna-Attisha, adding that health and society benefits include reduced special education, health care and criminal justice costs.
This week, Royal Oak issued an announcement that its tests from 30 sites with known lead service lines exceeded concentration levels of 15 parts per billion. The city estimated that out of 23,741 total service connections about 5 percent, or about 1,400 services were constructed with lead or lead-containing materials.
City officials said 15 parts per billion is the concentration considered ripe for "action" under the Michigan Safe Drinking Water Act to evaluate corrosion control. The city plans to increase the frequency of monitoring and the number of sites tested and then determine next steps.
Meanwhile, Royal Oak recommends the following to avoid excessive lead contamination:
• Run your water before consuming it.
• If you do not have a lead service line, run cold water for 30 seconds to two minutes, or until it becomes cold or reaches a steady temperature.
• If you do have a lead service line, run cold water for at least five minutes to flush water from the plumbing of your home and the lead service line.
• Consider using a filter to reduce lead in drinking water. Look for filters that are tested and certified to NSF/ANSI Standard 53 for lead reduction.
• Do not use hot water for drinking, cooking, or preparing baby formula. Boiling will not reduce the amount of lead in water.
• Clean your faucet aerator to remove trapped debris.
• Check whether your home has a lead service line. Check out this website for Royal Oak.
• Have your water tested for lead. Check out this state website for labs. For further information on lead visit this state website and one at the University of Michigan.
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November 01, 2019 at 08:52AM
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New lead water line study underway for Michigan - Crain's Detroit Business
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