AUSTIN - After a comprehensive multi-year inspection conducted in compliance with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) guidelines, Austin Water has announced that the city’s public water system is free of lead pipes. This milestone caps a decades-long effort to inventory and eliminate any lead infrastructure discovered in the system.

Austin Water has been proactively implementing many successful strategies to prevent exposure and get the lead out of our water for more than 50 years. Lead has not been permitted in public pipeline infrastructure since the 1950’s and Austin Water has removed any pre-existing lead lines during normal maintenance activity and water line rehabilitation projects since the 1960’s. In 2016, Austin Water began a comprehensive record review and material inventory of all public water service lines, including public and private side indicators, in compliance with the EPA’s Lead and Copper Rule Revisions. This work was completed last month and confirmed that Austin’s public water system contains no lead pipes.

“I am proud of the City of Austin for being a leader in effectively banning lead in our public water infrastructure in 1954 – well before the federal ban in 1986.” said Austin City Manager T.C. Broadnax. “Completing this comprehensive inventory confirms that our water system is free of lead pipes. Austinites should be proud of our City’s long-standing efforts to protect health and safety and Austin Water’s work to ensure that our system is free of lead pipes.”

Austin Water’s detailed inventory included a comprehensive examination of public and private service line materials. Each line was categorized according to EPA requirements as lead, non-lead, galvanized requiring replacement, or lead status unknown. Importantly, at the conclusion of the inventory process, there are no unknown or lead service lines in the system. In addition, Austin Water prioritized investigation of lines serving schools and licensed daycares. No lead pipes were found.

“The completion of this inventory marks a significant victory for the Austin community,” said Shay Ralls Roalson, Director of Austin Water. “Our efforts to test and replace any potential sources of lead demonstrate our proactive approach to maintaining the highest standards of water quality. Austin Water is committed to providing a safe and reliable system to serve our customers.”

Less than 1,000 lines on the private side of the meter are galvanized and may contain risk of lead contamination. Austin Water has pledged to work with homeowners opting to replace those galvanized lines. Details about this replacement program and the complete inventory of all lines in Austin Water’s service area are available for the public to review on an interactive web map.

Media Availability

Austin Water will present the results of this inventory and information about their galvanized replacement program at today’s Water and Wastewater Commission meeting, Wednesday, October 9, at 6 p.m. at the Waller Creek Center located at 625 E. 10th Street, Austin, Texas. Austin Water staff will be available for interviews after the conclusion of the meeting.