(File Photo of a boy drinking water out of a water fountain)

(Reported by Danielle Smith of Keystone News Service)

(Harrisburg, PA) Pennsylvania is working to eliminate lead pipes under the EPA’s Lead and Copper Rule Improvements, which require most lead pipes to be removed within ten years. The EPA estimates that ten to twenty percent of human exposure to lead may come from drinking water. Mora McLaughlin with Pittsburgh Water says it aims to meet benchmarks such as replacing lead service lines and improving corrosion control, using a prioritization model to allocate resources effectively, especially in neighborhoods that are most at need or at risk for lead contamination. McLaughlin notes that Pennsylvania has received more than 90 million dollars in low-interest loans through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act for replacing lead pipes with copper, achieving an average of fifteen hundred replacements annually.