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Saint Paul Regional Water Services outlines 10-year plan to remove lead service lines
Summary
Saint Paul Regional Water Services says it plans to remove lead service lines at no cost to customers over a 10-year program beginning in 2023, prioritizing replacements tied to other construction and using federal and local funding.
Saint Paul Regional Water Services (SPRWS) described its 10-year, no-cost program to replace lead service lines in the utility’s service area, reiterating program goals, prioritization criteria and options for property owners.
SPRWS said the utility’s treatment process (corrosion control) minimizes lead leaching, but the most reliable way to remove lead from drinking water is to replace lead service lines that run from mains in the street into private property. Under the program launched in 2023, SPRWS owns the water main and the public portion of the service line to the property line; individual property owners own the portion that runs from the property line into the building.
SPRWS reported that at the project start in 2023 about 26,000 lead service lines were estimated to exist in its service area and that the utility set a goal of removing all those lines between 2023 and 2032. The utility estimated total project costs at about $300,000,000 and said replacements will be prioritized using factors that include efficiency when coordinated with water-main replacements or street reconstruction and census data to identify areas with higher numbers of residents at risk from lead exposure.
The city’s program is voluntary. SPRWS said property owners can opt into the lead-free program when SPRWS schedules replacements on their street and can also accelerate a private-side replacement through a lead assessment program. Under the assessment option, a licensed contractor hired by a property owner can perform the private portion, and SPRWS will replace the public portion at no cost if lead is confirmed; the work may be financed via a 20-year low-interest assessment. SPRWS provided web resources for residents to check service-line materials and to complete an intent form to receive updates.
SPRWS emphasized that other indoor sources of lead—such as older faucets, lead solder or fixtures—can also contribute to exposure and offered short-term mitigation steps, including running cold water for 3 to 5 minutes after the water has been still for six hours and using certified drinking-water filters.
