TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) – US Environmental Protection Agency This month it issued a final rule requiring states to replace their lead pipes within 10 years.

The City of Topeka announced that it recently completed Leading Service Line Inventory as part of EPA’s Lead and Copper Rule Improvements.

“So they’re giving us three years to develop this plan, and part of that development consists of improving our inventory. “So we had to present an initial inventory, here’s what we know, here’s what we don’t know, and then we can put some price tags on that and help allocate funding over the next 10 years following that three-year period,” he says. City of Topeka Public Services Director Sylvia Davis.

Through research, historical records and site inspections, the city was able to determine which lead pipes needed to be replaced.

“We have about a little over 1,000 customers where we know that service lines may need to be replaced, because they may be lead or galvanized. We want to make sure we reach the remaining approximately 3,000 customers where we don’t know exactly what their service lines consist of,” Davis says.

KDHE State Environmental Health Officer, Dr. Farah Ahmed, says lead can be particularly harmful children under six years old.

“Children are more likely to suffer the long-term effects of lead exposure, so there is no truly safe level of lead. Children should not have lead in their bodies. For example, it can affect their ability to learn, it can lower their IQ, it can cause behavior problems because their brains are still developing at that age.” says Dr. Ahmed.

Unborn children exposed to lead in the womb may have a higher risk of brain and kidney problems and premature development. Adults may experience fertility problems, memory loss, and increased blood pressure.

Run water before use, use cold water, and use an approved lead-reducing filter. reduces the risk of lead poisoning.

“Instead, it’s something simple you can do at home; For example, if I need to boil water in a pot instead of turning on the tap and waiting for very hot water to come out, then this is probably what I want to fill my pot with. use cold water then go ahead and heat my water and that’s because if I have lead pipes in my house the higher temperature water is more likely to release that lead from the pipes and then bring it into my drinking water. Dr. Ahmed.

EPA also announced $27.7 million in funding to support replacement efforts over the next fifteen years.

Davis says the City of Topeka is doing its best to be proactive.

“We asked for authority to amend our budget so we could start working on some of this. If we’re doing some improvements in certain neighborhoods with known lead lines, we’re working to make sure that we have the budget authority to go ahead and start where it might be reasonable to responsibly. But we have a total of 13 years to really develop our plan, and then we have a change cycle program that will replace all of those specific service lines,” Davis says.

Residents with unknown service lines will receive mail within the next few weeks.

You can call the city’s customer service line at: 785-368-3111 If you have questions about lead. Click to view the inventory map of the city of Topeka Here.

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