Hamilton outlines plan to comply with revised Lead and Copper Rule; posts public service‑line map

Evan Porter, the city’s executive director of infrastructure, told the Hamilton City Council that the city has completed and submitted a water service‑line inventory to the Ohio EPA and published an interactive map residents can use to check whether a line is known, unknown or likely to contain lead.

Porter said the city engaged Blue Conduit with a $50,000 grant to develop the inventory and to apply machine‑learning to predict service‑line materials where records are missing. “We actually received a $50,000 grant to utilize the services of this company… and they helped us to develop the lead service line inventory,” Porter said.

Staff described the technical picture for residents: Hamilton’s system includes two treatment plants, about 330 miles of mains and roughly 24,400 meters. Porter explained that utility responsibility typically stops at the curb‑stop valve and that property owners are responsible for the private side of the service line, including repairs and replacement.

The presentation summarized potential sources of lead—lead service lines, lead solder in plumbing and lead in fixtures—and framed the work under the federal and state rules that implement the Lead and Copper Rule. Porter told council that Hamilton submitted its inventory and made it publicly accessible online, and that customers with known or potential lead service lines will be notified by mail; staff said those notifications must be issued no later than Nov. 16, 2024.

On the regulatory schedule, Porter said the city “must develop a replacement plan, which is due by 2027,” and that the city will then implement that plan within the timing required by the Lead and Copper Rule revisions (staff cited a 2027–2037 implementation window during the presentation).

Porter outlined outreach and verification steps: staff will publish the interactive map and a customer service‑line material survey, ask residents to submit photos and answers to help confirm materials, and use inspection and capital projects to validate and update the map. He said staff will make paper options and bill‑inserts available for residents who do not receive electronic notifications.

Council members asked whether property owners or the city pay for private‑side replacements; Porter said the private side is the property owner’s responsibility. He also acknowledged that physical confirmation requires excavation and that the city’s inventory relies on records, targeted inspections and predictive analytics until full verification can occur.

Next steps listed by staff included continuing public education, sending the customer notifications, conducting surveys and inspections, updating the online map in real time, seeking grant funding for replacement work, and developing the formal replacement plan required under the LCRR.