This is mostly wrong. The Lead and Copper regulations have been in effect for almost 25 years. They are designed to identify waters that are corrosive to lead or copper and require corrective actions to make the water non corrosive and if not then to require lead line replacement. The Flint situation occurred because they did not follow the regulations, and did not even follow good practice to identify and control corrosivity when they changed their source of water to the river from Lake Huron. Lead levels that were detected in some children were somewhat higher. But I have not seen reports that the blood lead levels were extremely high. The high numbers that I have seen are well below the average child lead levels that existed when leaded gasoline was in use. In the 1976-1980 time period the average US child had 16 ug/dl. The report that I saw from the Michigan DHHS indicated 3.4% exceeded 5 ug/dl and 0,6% exceeded 10 ug/dl. The average US today is around 1 ug/dl and that is mostly from he elimination of leaded gasoline.
Published by Joseph Cotruvo, President at Joseph Cotruvo & Associates, Water , Environment and Public Health
This is mostly wrong. The Lead and Copper regulations have been in effect for almost 25 years. They are designed to identify waters that are corrosive to lead or copper and require corrective actions to make the water non corrosive and if not then to require lead line replacement. The Flint situation occurred because they did not follow the regulations, and did not even follow good practice to identify and control corrosivity when they changed their source of water to the river from Lake Huron. Lead levels that were detected in some children were somewhat higher. But I have not seen reports that the blood lead levels were extremely high. The high numbers that I have seen are well below the average child lead levels that existed when leaded gasoline was in use. In the 1976-1980 time period the average US child had 16 ug/dl. The report that I saw from the Michigan DHHS indicated 3.4% exceeded 5 ug/dl and 0,6% exceeded 10 ug/dl. The average US today is around 1 ug/dl and that is mostly from he elimination of leaded gasoline.