Federal law delivers $28.6 million to Kansas for replacing lead pipes for drinking water

TOPEKA — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency set aside $28.6 million from the bipartisan federal infrastructure law to replace a portion of the estimated 160,000 lead water lines in Kansas capable of causing severe illness, especially among young children.

Lead service lines bringing water into residences from main lines under the street have been identified as a contributor to poisoning of humans. Lead exposure disproportionately harms communities of color and low-income families.

“From the water in our taps to the rain in our gutters, water infrastructure touches many parts of our lives,” said U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, D-Kansas. “People don’t always realize how important those systems are until they fail, but it’s our responsibility to ensure they never get to that point.”

So far, approximately $85 million has been allocated to Kansas to deal with lead pipe installed before 1986 when Congress amended the Safe Drinking Water Act to prohibit use pipe, solder or flux that wasn’t “lead free” in public water systems or plumbing for water destined for human consumption.

The Natural Resources Defense Council reported in 2021 that Kansas had the third-highest number of lead pipes per 100,000 residents among the 50 states. Wisconsin led the nation with 5,597 per 100,000 people, with Ohio at 5,519, Kansas at 5,446, Missouri at 5,362 and Illinois at 5,302. Iowa, with 5,012, and Nebraska, with 4,945, were also in the top 10 nationally on a per-capita basis, NRDC said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention maintains there was no safe level of lead exposure for children. Low levels of exposure to the potent neurotoxin in children has been linked to brain and nervous system damage and contributed to learning disabilities, harm to blood cells and impaired hearing. In adults, lead contributed to cardiovascular disease, kidney damage and reproductive complications.

“We know that lead has serious and harmful health effects on individuals, especially children,” said Janet Stanek, secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. “This investment from the bipartisan infrastructure law gives Kansas the resources it needs to continue replacing water infrastructure that ultimately ensures safe drinking water, which is essential for the health and safety of all Kansans.”

The EPA funding earmarked for Kansas was drawn from the 2021 federal infrastructure law passed by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden. It was opposed by the five GOP members of the Kansas congressional delegation.

“This historic funding to replace lead service lines is a significant step toward a healthier tomorrow for our heartland communities and future generations,” said Meghan McCollister, administrator of the EPA region that covers Kansas.

EPA estimated 9 million lead service lines were currently in use across the United States. Overall, the federal infrastructure law would invest $15 billion for lead pipe removal. Federal funding released by EPA to this point would replace an estimated 1.7 million lead pipes across the country.

Under federal law, 49% of infrastructure funding for countering the lead problem must be provided as grants and forgivable loans to disadvantaged communities.