Republican lawmakers are seeking to end a Biden administration mandate that local governments and water utilities identify and replace lead pipes nationwide, potentially obstructing efforts being made in metro Atlanta.
The Lead and Copper Rule Improvements (LCRI) aim to eliminate toxic pipes in the U.S. within the next 10 years. Following this mandate, areas like DeKalb and Fulton counties discovered that the makeup of thousands of pipes in their communities is unknown.
Republican U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde of Georgia introduced a joint resolution to the House of Representatives last month that insists that Congress “disapproves” of the mandate and that it “shall have no force or effect.”
The same resolution was introduced in January by U.S. Rep. Gary Palmer, a Republican lawmaker from Alabama, but it needed to be reintroduced for procedural reasons.
If the LCRI are revoked, the decision to investigate the pipes of unknown material would be at the discretion of local governments and utilities, according to Sara Lips, spokesperson for Georgia’s Environmental Protection Division.
Some advocates worry that without the LCRI, local governments will not prioritize efforts to address lead contamination, which studies have shown is more likely to harm Black communities nationwide.
“These pipes have been in the ground for decades — in some places, over 100 years — and utilities and municipalities haven’t taken any steps to figure out what the pipe materials are,” said Valerie Baron, national policy director and senior attorney with the National Resources Defense Council, an environmental advocacy group. “We need this protection for children’s health and for the health of our communities.”
Fulton intends to investigate whether any of its reported 25,409 unidentified service lines are made of lead, according to Regina Waller, a county spokesperson. It’s unclear if those plans will remain if the LCRI are revoked.
“At this time, Fulton County is awaiting to see what redirection, if any, comes out of the federal and state agencies regarding this program,” Waller told Capital B Atlanta via email. “Therefore, we have not decided if the program will continue if the federal and state agencies change the current requirements.”
In an email to Capital B, DeKalb spokesperson Quinn Hudson said the county identified 108,000 unknown lines as of Friday. College Park identified about 2,000 service lines made of unknown materials.
DeKalb and College Park officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the future of their programs.
The EPA estimates that it would cost nearly $19.7 billion to replace Georgia’s public lead service lines.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has provided millions in funding over the past few years to help communities in Georgia replace existing lead service lines. The EPA says Georgia received $66.8 million in 2022 and an additional $28.6 million in 2023 from the federal government for lead pipe replacement.
While this federal funding was earmarked under Biden for a five-year period, it’s unclear if a similar initiative would take place under President Donald Trump.
“President Trump and EPA’s newly confirmed Administrator Lee Zeldin have been clear that EPA will safeguard the nation’s air, water, and land for current and future generations while supporting economic growth and opportunity,” Patti Ghezzi, a press officer with the Environmental Protection Agency’s Region 4, said via a statement to Capital B Atlanta. “This commitment includes ensuring that our nation’s drinking water is safe from lead.”
If the LCRI end, Georgia’s Environmental Protection Division says the state would revert to following the federal Lead and Copper Rule Revisions, or LCRR.
The major differences between these two rules is that the LCRR allow a higher level of lead in water and do not federally mandate that all lead pipes must be replaced within 10 years.
Baron says the LCRR aren’t aggressive enough, as they don’t require a mandate to remove all lead pipes.
Additionally, due to the Congressional Review Act, which allows lawmakers to overturn certain federal agency actions, the EPA would not be allowed to propose a similar rule in the future.
Lead exposure risks for infants and young children include decreases in IQ and attention span, as well as learning and behavioral issues, according to the EPA. Adults who come into contact with lead are at increased risk of high blood pressure, kidney and nervous system issues, and heart disease.
Tom Neltner, national director of Unleaded Kids, a nonprofit organization focused on addressing lead removal policies, said that because of practices like redlining, Black residents are historically more likely to live in older homes, where lead is more prevalent than in modern homes.
“Over the years, we see that Black Americans have higher levels of lead in their blood,” Neltner said. “For the past 25 years, there’s been a tremendous investment in reducing the exposure disparities based on race and income. We’ve made progress, but I think we still have to keep going.”
