COLUMBUS – Ohioans no longer would wait weeks — or months — to learn their water might be poisonous under legislation proposed by Gov. John Kasich and state environmental regulators.
READ MORE: In The Columbus Dispatch
Notices warning of lead-contaminated drinking water would be issued more quickly and schools and communities would receive financial help to address lead concerns under the pending bill.
Concerns about high lead levels escalated this year when it was discovered residents of the Mahoning County village of Sebring were drinking risky water, with months passing before they learned of the danger.
Kasich and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency want to more quickly turn around water-quality tests to provide faster high-lead alerts and take other steps to eliminate lead dangers. High-lead levels can cause health and developmental problems, particularly in infants and young children.
“We think it’s hugely significant in advancing how we are protecting public health” beyond current state standards and federal regulations that may not be updated for years, said Ohio EPA Director Craig W. Butler.
“We’re expediting public notice, making sure the public has access to, and is provided information about (lead-testing) results,” Butler said of the bill, expected to be introduced next week.
Laboratories that serve water systems would have to finish tests within 30 days and provide results to operators and the EPA within two business days. Residents then would have to be notified of high levels within two days.
Homeowners who volunteer for water testing would receive test results within two days instead of the current 30 days. Failure to comply with the new deadline would result in EPA notification and a fine for water systems.
Rep. John Boccieri (D-Poland) introduced a bill mandating a 30-day public notification timeline, but also placing water testing authority in the hands of local boards of health.
“The process failed at the connection between the private state-certified vendor and the EPA,” Boccieri said, referring to the Sebring incident.
The EPA is making low-interest loans available for public water systems to improve corrosion control and infrastructure, and bringing Ohio’s lead content standards for pipes into compliance with the lower federal limit.
The Ohio Water Development Authority will make funds available to help schools identify outdated, lead-containing water fixtures, with the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission to provide money to replace fixtures not covered by a recall. Many school water fountains were recalled in the 1980s due to lead concerns, but some still may exist in older schools.
Water service lines containing dangerous levels of lead also could be replaced and lead-inhibiting anti-corrosion systems installed through a variety of state low-interest loans and other programs.