Lead

Lead in Homes | Lead in Water

Solutions

Lead poisoning is 100% preventable! Making homes lead-safe prevents children from being poisoned.

Click here for the Lead Hazard Control Program

To learn more about making homes lead-safe, contact the Healthy Homes Coalition of West Michigan at (616) 241-3300.

Lead in Water

In west Michigan, lead in drinking water is rarely identified as the primary route of exposure for children with elevated blood lead levels. While lead exposure through drinking water is possible, EPA-mandated testing results for west Michigan communities consistently report that the lead content in municipal water supplies is below EPA guidelines. In Grand Rapids, the most recent testing results available (2022) report lead levels as below the action level in Grand Rapids’ water.

While this is good news, water testing can only provide lead content at one moment in time. Water testing cannot guarantee that your drinking water is safe 100% of the time. In order to assure safe drinking water, use an NSF-approved water filter or refer to this Filter Guide by the Environmental Working Group.

Potential Hazards in Drinking Water

The City of Grand Rapids is required by the State of Michigan to replace all 20,000 lead service lines by 2041 at City cost. Typically, this occurs during scheduled road work so that the City can replace lead lines as efficiently as possible. Once a project is planned for the street the City of Grand Rapids will contact resident and owner about replacing the lead line to the house at City cost.

If you are contacted by the City of Grand Rapids, please have the owner sign and return the Water Service Agreement that gives the City permission to replace the lead water service line.

The owner can replace the private-side lead water service line at their own expense before the City makes the replacement. A plumbing contractor can provide an estimate of the cost. If they wish, the owner can spread the cost over 10 years using the City’s Ten-Pay program. They will pay a small interest rate. Contact Water-Sewer Services at watersewerservices@grcity.us or 616-456-4100 for more information.

You can read about the City of Grand Rapids’ water quality here. The City’s water meets or exceeds all the requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act. The City samples drinking water in 50 homes each year to better understand the lead and copper levels in the system. The City then uses corrosion-control measures at the water filtration plant to ensure lead levels are controlled and exposure to lead is minimized. However, no level of lead is safe. Lead can enter the drinking water when the water is in contact with a lead water service line or some plumbing fixtures. If your water has been sitting for several hours, the City recommends that you run your water for at least five minutes to flush water from both your home plumbing and the lead service line.

Information on lead in drinking water, testing methods, and steps you can take to minimize exposure is available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 1-800-426-4791, at www.epa.gov/safewater/lead, or at www.michigan.gov/mileadsafe/learn/water.

If you are concerned about lead in your water, you may wish to have your water tested by a certified laboratory. Nearby laboratories certified for lead testing include the State of Michigan Drinking Water Laboratory (517-335-8184), Prein & Newhof Laboratory (616-364-7600), and Alliance Analytical Laboratories (616-837-7670). Contact the State of Michigan Drinking Water Laboratory at 517-335-8184 for more information. The City of Grand Rapids tests 50 homes each year. Visit www.grcity.us/watersampling to learn more about the sampling program and apply to participate.

For information about other lead hazards in the home, you may want to contact the City of Grand Rapids’ Lead Hazard Control Program at 616-456-3030 or lhcp@grcity.us. The Michigan Saves Lead Poisoning Prevention Fund is an accessible loan product. Both of these programs can help you assess the home for the presence of lead-based paint and related hazards. Please contact the Lead Programs Specialist at communitydev@grcity.us for more information. If you are concerned about your child’s exposure to lead you can talk to your doctor about blood lead testing.

You can read more about the City’s Lead Service Line Replacement Program.

• Use NSF approved water filtration [more info on NSF-approved filters for lead] for two years following a service line replacement or until your water tests at a level with which you are comfortable. While the EPA sets an allowable limit of 15 parts per billion for municipal water testing, the EPA “has set the maximum contaminant level goal for lead in drinking water at zero because lead is a toxic metal that can be harmful to human health even at low exposure levels” [source: EPA]. According to a CDC report, “Residents of properties where plumbing work has been done, including partial replacement of LSL, should take precautions such as using bottled or filtered water until they are sure that the water lead levels are below the EPA action level of 15 ppb” [source: CDC]. It should be noted that partial replacements of leaded service lines are not permitted in Michigan.
• Consider conducting private water testing to assure that your drinking water is safe.
• Special precaution should be taken by parents who are formula feeding children since such a significant portion of their diet depends upon the quality of the water source and because infants are undergoing rapid neurological development that can be negatively impacted by lead exposure.

Are you wondering if your service line contains lead? The City of Grand Rapids has an informative map that shows if the public and/or private side of the lead service line contains lead for customers receiving water from the Grand Rapids Water System.

How to Get Water Tested

The State of Michigan and other certified laboratories offer water testing for lead. For a fact sheet complete with contact information, click here.

If you have a lead service line, the Healthy Homes Coalition recommends a second sample that captures water that has been sitting in your service line. Click here for a sample protocol on how to collect both a “first draw” and a second sample that collects water that has been sitting in your home’s service line.

Please note that water testing can only provide lead content at one moment in time. Water testing cannot guarantee that your drinking water is safe 100% of the time. In order to assure safe drinking water, use an NSF-approved water filter. These filters can be found for less than $30 (does not include cost of replacement filters). Free filters are available through GettingAheadOfLead.com.