Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Lead And Copper Rule topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Weatherford to notify about 4,000 customers under new EPA lead-and-copper rule; inventory finds no lead service lines
Summary
City staff told the municipal utility board that Weatherford submitted its initial inventory under the EPAs revised lead-and-copper rule and will mail roughly 4,000 letters; staff reported zero confirmed lead service lines, about 2% galvanized lines categorized for replacement (286 services) and roughly 28% still unknown.
The City of Weatherford will send approximately 4,000 customer notification letters required under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's recently finalized lead-and-copper rule improvements, staff told the municipal utility board.
Rick Schafer, speaking for utility staff, said the city submitted its initial service-line inventory to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and noted the next compliance steps. Schafer told the board that, based on work to date, Weatherford has identified no confirmed lead service lines; about 2% of services are galvanized and are being categorized as requiring replacement (286 services); roughly 70% are confirmed non-lead and about 28% of services remain unknown pending field verification. Schafer said the unknowns are not automatically lead; they require potholing or inspection to determine material.
Schafer said the city must notify customers whose service lines are identified as lead, galvanized requiring replacement, or still unknown; he estimated about 4,000 letters will go out over the next week. He also said the Texas Water Development Board grant remains a pursued funding option. According to Schafer, the board clarified that grant acceptance does not obligate utilities to pay the private-side replacement cost; cities can elect to pay private-side costs but are permitted to require the property owner to bear them. Schafer noted utilities must make at least four attempts to contact a property owner before recording a refusal and that account records and permit reviews will be flagged to inform new owners and permit applicants of service-line material.
Schafer reviewed federal deadlines cited in the rule: the EPA package was finalized Oct. 8, and initial inventories were due Oct. 16 (submitted to TCEQ by Weatherford). He said the regulatory identification deadline for unknowns extends to Oct. 2031 and that all replacements must be complete by Oct. 2037; internally the city is targeting completion of replacements earlier, with an internal goal to have inventories and many replacements done by December 2025 and to complete work before the rule's effective dates where possible.
Board members asked practical questions about whether the four-notice requirement applies to galvanized lines (Schafer: yes, it applies similarly), whether a registry will flag affected properties during sales or permitting (Schafer: yes, accounts will be marked and utility billing will notify new-account applicants) and whether service can be withheld for owners who refuse replacement (Schafer: no, service cannot be withheld). A board member requested a copy of the notification letter; Schafer agreed to provide it and said the utility would copy city council members who are not on the board to help field questions.
The board heard the update as an informational staff report; no formal action was taken on the lead-and-copper compliance item.
