Removing Lead Water Pipes in Communities to Protect Public Health
CLEVELAND, OHIO
Replacing lead water service pipes in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, will reduce the risk of toxic lead exposure for children and adults.
Seventy years after Cleveland, Ohio, stopped installing leadbased water service lines in homes, its Division of Water is still hard at work replacing the county’s approximately 178,000 remaining lead lines with copper. Although the Division of Water has routinely replaced between 2,000 and 3,000 lead pipes per year, its number of lead pipes still rank among the highest in the country. At the current rate of replacement, it will take decades to ensure all 1.4 million people in the Cuyahoga County service area have safe, lead-free service lines.
Replacing lead service lines is an important public health issue. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the presence of lead in drinking water can cause severe negative health effects for adults, children, and fetuses. Adults who consume lead in drinking water may experience symptoms like high blood pressure, a decline in cardiovascular health, increased risk of hypertension, decreased kidney function, and reproductive issues. In pregnant people, lead exposure can result in premature birth and small, undernourished babies. Children may experience anemia, hearing problems, behavioral and learning delays, and, in severe cases, seizures, coma, and death.
Lead pipes that have been removed from a water system
Cleveland Water has been consistently treating the city’s drinking water for lead since 1997, and no new lead-based lines have been installed since 1954, but the utility still says that replacing existing lead lines with non-toxic copper is the safest course of action for Cleveland residents.
To that end, the City has been ramping up its lead pipe replacement efforts since 2021, when it launched a $2.5 million pilot program funded by state and federal dollars to replace lead service lines to more than 450 daycare centers in Cleveland.
From there, the city received $19 million in federal funding from the Ohio EPA, which allowed Cleveland Water to replace more than 4,000 pipes in 2023. The city plans to apply for additional funding, made available as part of $355 million awarded to the Ohio EPA via the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, in similar amounts each year for the next four years.
This support will allow Cleveland to replace 4,000– 6,000 lines annually, with total replacement of all lead service lines expected to be completed in 25 years. Initial work is centered on 13 communities that have been identified as “disadvantaged,” according to guidelines set by the federal government that assess communities based on rates of poverty, unemployment, water affordability, and other factors. Out of the 78 total communities in the Cleveland Water service area, these 13 communities are home to 80% of the lead service lines.
Resource Challenges Addressed
Lead poisoning
Water quality
Water pollution
Water infrastructure
Environmental justice
Key Partners
Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, City of Cleveland Division of Water, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S. Department of Labor
Cost
$19,000,000
Results and Accomplishments
Cleveland Water was able to replace more than 4,000 lead pipes in 2023. Future funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will enable the city to continue this progress, removing lead water pipes from 13 disadvantaged Cleveland communities and eliminating 80% of the remaining lead service lines in the city, resulting in better health outcomes for residents of Cuyahoga County
*This story is part of a Great Lakes restoration success story packet that was used in the Coalition’s 2024 Great Lakes Day, with one story from each state in the region. Read the full packet
