Protecting public health, water quality, and you! Minimizing the risk of lead exposure.

Portland Water District’s top priority is providing safe drinking water. Minimizing the risk of lead getting into your drinking water is critical to achieving that goal. There is no measurable lead in Sebago Lake, but lead can enter drinking water through plumbing materials and fixtures containing lead.

An announcement by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on November 30, 2023, strengthens existing regulations about lead. The EPA requires public water systems to account for the pipe material on both the utility-side and customer-side of the water service lines. Water service lines are the pipes that connect individual buildings to the larger water mains in streets.

A thorough review of records indicates that the Portland Water District’s water system has no lead pipe on the publicly-owned mains and services. PWD is also working to determine if there are any lead service lines on the customer-owned portions of the water service lines. PWD has investigated over 99% of the 57,489 water service lines and has found no lead pipe on customer-owned services. There are less than 300 private water services left to inspect.

Information about PWD’s efforts to minimize exposure to lead in drinking water, EPA regulations, and steps for reducing the risk of exposure to lead can be found on the PWD website at www.pwd.org/protecting-public-health-minimizing-lead-exposure.