BUFFALO, NY (WKBW) — The City of Buffalo is continuing work to remove lead from city homes as lead poisoning remains a serious concern.
A 2018 study found that Buffalo has “some of the highest rates” of childhood lead exposure in the nation. Much of that lead comes from old homes with lead-based paint, but there is another source the city is tackling: lead water pipes.
Buffalo Water is now partnering with community-based organizations to replace city water pipes.
“This is a long-term problem that we're dealing with,” said Oluwole McFoy, Buffalo Water board.
Buffalo Water kicked off a program to replace about 40,000 lead lines throughout the city. It's a lofty mission, but it will be free of charge to city homeowners.
“It is actually a very difficult situation when we're talking about excavating and pulling out all of the lead service lines and replacing them with cooper. This is not a cheap thing, and this is something that we've been able to do free and not included on the backs of our customers because we've been able to get grant funds,” responded McFoy.
“Already we've been able to connect with over 60 homeowners that had absolutely no idea the type of material that their pipes were made out of,” remarked Franchelle Parker, executive director, Open Buffalo.
Open Buffalo is joining forces with Buffalo Water to get the word out to our city of good neighbors to help homeowners find out if a lead service line is carrying water into their homes.
“And I’ll go down in your basement with you, and it's simple, and we have expertise. and we have a unique moment where we can actually replace them free of charge,” explained Parker. “Hey, it takes under two minutes to go into your basement and to check."
Buffalo Water already rolled out a "Get Water-Wise" test kit for residents.
And it's easy to understand why the city has such a major issue with lead Buffalo has some of the oldest housing stock in the nation.
“And you know when we're talking about the infrastructure of the City of Buffalo -- it's old, right? And it needs updating and one of the issues that it is causing is the health of our children,” commented Zeneta Everhart, Buffalo Common Council member, Masten District,
“The dangers of having lead pipe really goes to our most vulnerable -- our children and our seniors, and they deal with all kinds of problems that stick with you through years,” McFoy noted.
So far 2,000 service lines have been replaced, but there are still 33,000 to pull. The EPA wants the project to be completed in the next 10 years.
