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Resident urges Las Cruces to comply with EPA lead-and-copper rule, requests independent engineer review
Summary
During public comment at the June 2 council meeting, Liz Rodriguez Johnson said Las Cruces Utilities is not complying with EPA’s new lead-and-copper rule and asked the council to direct the city manager to bring in an independent engineer to assess compliance and recommend fixes.
Liz Rodriguez Johnson, a resident who spoke during public participation at the June 2 Las Cruces City Council meeting, urged the council to address what she characterized as noncompliance with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) new lead-and-copper rule.
Johnson said the rule requires water systems to offer a tap-water lead test to any consumer who requests it if the service line is lead, galvanized requiring replacement, or unknown. She told the council that Las Cruces Utilities’ October notification to property owners omitted that offer and that the city’s website likewise did not include the information. She described a March town-hall interaction in which a resident asked to be put on a sampling list and said utility personnel “did not make this offer.”
Johnson asked the council to “direct the city manager to bring in an independent engineer with management experience to assess comprehensively Las Cruces Utilities’ compliance with the new rule and recommend any needed changes that would lead to a comprehensive resolution of the issue.” She said residents are seeking clarification and enforcement of the new federal requirement.
No formal council action on the request was recorded during the meeting. City staff later discussed utility-related public comments with council members and thanked utilities staff for responding to resident requests, but the council did not adopt a formal directive during the session.
