On May 13, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that Puerto Rico will receive $28.6 million from President Biden’s Investing in America infrastructure initiative to help Puerto Rico identify and replace lead service lines to prevent exposure to lead in drinking water.
Lead in water
Lead pipes are the primary source of lead in drinking water. Lead leaches into drinking water from corroded pipes. Many factors affect how much lead is present in water, including the age and wear on the pipes. Older houses are more likely to deliver lead-contaminated drinking water.
There is no safe level of lead in water. Lead can cause high blood pressure, heart problems, and kidney damage in adults. It its also associated with reproductive health issues, mental confusion, and other neurological problems. Pregnant women may experience miscarriages or pre-term birth.
The effects on children are even more severe. Lead poisoning causes learning problems, lower IQ, hearing loss, anemia, and delayed development. These effects are not reversible. The Centers for Disease Control call for public health response when a child’s blood shows 3.5 micrograms per deciliter or more of lead. However, children in Puerto Rico are not tested for lead poisoning.
These health effects are caused by ongoing exposure to low levels of lead. Higher levels can lead to coma, brain damage, and death.
Long-term problems
Shortly after Hurricane Maria, studies found that 97% of residents of Puerto Rico received their water from sources which had violated testing requirements for lead and copper. Researchers said they believed that the water was not being tested because the water authority preferred not to have evidence of contamination.
Estimates of lead pipe usage in states are available, but Puerto Rico is not included in this data. The ongoing problem of lack of data on Puerto Rico complicates the situation.
The only way to solve the problem of lead pipes is to replace the pipes with a safer option. There are simple tests to determine whether your home has lead service pipes. The link provides instructions in English and in Spanish. The federal funding will assist with the cost of replacing the pipes.
