Yankton to mail lead/galvanized service-line notices after city completes inventory

YANKTON, S.D. — City staff told the City Commission Tuesday that the municipal water system will start mailing notices to homeowners after completing a required lead service-line inventory and verification process under recent revisions to the Environmental Protection Agency's Lead and Copper Rule.

The commission heard that the city has verified about 91 lead service lines and roughly 115 galvanized lines requiring replacement; about 3,000 service connections built before 1986 remain "unknown" pending further verification. Kyle, the city staff member who presented the inventory, said the city plans to send lead and galvanized notices first and follow with unknown-status letters roughly a week later.

Why it matters: the EPA revisions require systems to create and update inventories and to notify owners where the service material is known or unknown. The city said the inventory will affect hundreds to thousands of properties and that replacement requirements under federal proposals could eventually mandate full replacement of lead service lines.

Kyle told the commission the city’s historical water sampling — 15 first-draw samples from residences known to have lead service lines collected as part of routine monitoring — have ranged from 0.1 to 0.57 parts per billion, well below the EPA action level of 15 ppb. "We have a very good corrosion control program in place," he said, but added that the inventory and public-notice duties are separate steps required under the rule revisions.

The presentation explained the inventory categories: "lead" (verified lead line), "galvanized requiring replacement" (galvanized pipe that has ever been downstream or upstream of lead), "non-lead" (post-1986 installations assumed copper), and "unknown" (pre-1986 where material outside the house cannot be verified). Kyle said that most galvanized lines in Yankton will be treated as requiring replacement because records rarely confirm whether a lead line was ever connected to them.

The city described logistics and homeowner responsibilities. Yankton's ordinance makes the homeowner responsible for the service line from the main to the house, including curb stop and corporation stop; the city owns only the distribution main and the meter. Kyle said homeowners who receive a lead or galvanized notice will be asked to verify replacements when appropriate (for example, if they replaced a line in 2003), and the city will accept owner verification documentation.

Commissioners pressed for cost and funding details. Kyle said private replacements have ranged "anywhere from $2,000 to $10,000" depending on distance to the main, obstructions such as buildings or garages over lines, surface conditions and season. He said he was not aware of any state programs that currently fund private-side replacements and that he did not expect federal funding for private replacements over the next several years. "So far there is not" state funding for private-side work, he said.

The commission asked about timing under future federal proposals. Kyle said a later phase of the EPA rule under consideration would require replacement of all lead service lines by about 2034 if the current draft remains intact. The commission and staff discussed coordinating replacements with city street projects to reduce homeowner costs.

The presentation included homeowner guidance: flush water lines for 30 seconds before drinking, avoid hot-water draws for drinking water, and use NSF/ANSI 53-certified filters for lead removal if desired. Kyle said letters would go out late this week or early next week and provided the water plant phone number for questions.

The discussion also covered sampling strategy and the practical difficulty of verifying underground service material without access or excavation. Donnie Robinson, a contractor present in the audience, was identified as working with the meter-changeout program and confirmed the city has replaced more than 4,000 meters as part of verification efforts.

What happens next: the city will mail verified-lead and galvanized notices first, then unknown notices; continue on-site verification where possible during planned meter work; and bring any proposed ordinance changes back to the commission later if state rules make replacement mandates necessary.

"If you receive a letter that says you have a lead line or a galvanized line, you would be required to disclose that as a material fact in your property disclosure when you go to sell your house," Kyle said when asked about real-estate consequences.

Ending: Commissioners asked staff to continue public education and to prioritize notices in areas slated for street work to reduce replacement costs for homeowners. Questions and calls were directed to the water plant number Kyle provided.