Villages . . . towns . . . and cities . . . in Nebraska are all required to submit water samples to the state of Nebraska to determine if the water is contaminated, or not. While some tests are conducted more often, the tests for ‘lead-copper’ is done once every three years.
Near the end of last week, Lawrence village residents all received notices that the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy reported that the village did not pass the requirements of a recent lead and copper survey sent in.
The requirement set by the state is that more than 90 percent of the samples needed to pass the tests.
In Lawrence, five samples were sent in and one sample came back too high. That one sample was 20 percent of the samples sent in and triggered the notices.
The village was required to deliver information to each household in the Village within 24 hours.
“No action is required by you,” ended the notice.
The city of Hastings was also put on notice for a similar set of circumstances according to an article in one of last weekend’s issues of the Hastings Tribune. However, it is not known if other villages in the area were affected by the same samples. A check with several towns did not indicate any such situations.
From what this reporter understood, the problem occurs in homes that have “older” service lines from the main water mains into individual homes. Lead pipes were at one time the main (maybe the only) way the water was delivered into private homes or businesses.
The notice included steps to be taken to reduce your exposure to lead in your water. They include: • using a filter for your drinking water; • clean your aerator; • use cold water for drinking, cooking or making baby formula as lead dissolves more easily in hot water; • run water. The more time water has been sitting in your home’s pipes, the more lead it may contain.
Reader Comments(0)