ENERGY BRIEFING: Biden Faces Big Task Replacing Lead Water Pipes

摘要

The Biden administration wants to take a huge swing at the problem of lead water pipes, proposing to replace 100% of the nation's lead pipes and service lines. The American Jobs Plan aims to reduce lead exposure in 400,000 schools and child care centers and 6 to 10 million homes, and create union and prevailing wage jobs, according to the administration. To fund the plan, Biden said he'll ask Congress to invest $45 billion in the EPA's Drinking Water State Revolving Fund and in Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act (WIIN) grants. Several advocates praised the plan, with Environment America's Clean Water Program Director John Rumpler calling it "the single greatest step we've seen this century to reverse lead contamination of our drinking water." But others say the plan still isn't big enough, in part because the full magnitude of the nation's lead pipe problems is unknown. "Some lines are easier to fix than others because they're just underground," said Brett Hartl, government affairs director at the Center for Biological Diversity. "But some are in houses, which is harder because you have to tear the wall out, and main lines can be mixtures of different composites and materials. No one knows the scope of the problem. So it's just unlikely that that's enough money." Records of lead pipes are shaky at best, offering little help, added Marc Edwards, a civil and environmental engineering professor who specializes in water infrastructure issues at Virginia Tech University. Read more from Stephen Lee and Kellie Lunney.