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 The tool allows residents to search for their
water system and download a report detailing the types of materials
that make up the local water distribution system. The Service Line
Material Inventory Reports table can be found at
https:// www2. illinois.gov/epa/
topics/drinking-water/public-water-users/Pages/lead-service-line-information.aspx.
All reported data submitted for 2017 is now available online and
Community Water Systems have until April 15, 2019 to submit calendar
year 2018 data.
“This tool has been developed to provide added transparency to
residents by identifying the make-up of public water distribution
systems in Illinois,” said Illinois EPA Acting Director John J. Kim.
“As inventories are completed by community water systems, we
anticipate this tool will not only be used by residents but also by
public health officials as they investigate possible sources of lead
exposure in children with elevated blood lead levels.”
Based on preliminary data reported by 1,659 of the 1,743 community
water systems in Illinois for 2017, the Agency estimates that
Illinois has 3,736,666 total water service lines. Of those, 414,895
are made of Lead; 318,653 are Copper (potentially with Lead solder);
67,273 are Galvanized; 1,222,133 are Copper without Lead solder; and
208,964 are Plastic. The remaining 1,504,748 service lines are
currently unknown material, emphasizing the need for complete
distribution system material inventories. [to top of second
column] |
The Illinois Environmental Protection Act was amended in 2017 by
Public Act 99-0922 to require annual service line material inventories, which
provides details on each water distribution system in Illinois. Specifically,
the law requires each community water system to submit information to the
Illinois EPA identifying:
(1) the total number of service lines within or connected to the distribution
system, including privately owned service lines;
(2) the number of all known lead service lines within or connected to the
distribution system, including privately owned lead service lines; and
(3) the number of lead service lines that were added to the inventory after the
previous year’s submission. Water systems will continue to submit information on
an annual basis until the inventory is complete.
The Environmental Defense Fund has recognized Illinois as one of only 16 states
that have proactively developed policies related to lead service line
replacement. Of those 16 states, Illinois is one of just four that has a
mandatory program to develop a statewide inventory of water distribution
systems.
[Illinois Environmental Protection
Agency]
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