(MENAFN- EIN Presswire)
Green Bay Water Utility announces the end of its project to remove lead pipes from the city's water system.
GREEN BAY, WI, USA, October 1, 2020 / EINPresswire.com / -- While many cities are only beginning the process of lead pipe removal, Green Bay Water Utility announces the end of a nearly five-year-long journey to eradicate lead pipes from the city. On Tuesday, October 6th, the final replacement construction will take place at Green Bay resident Deb Weaver's home at 1184 Emilie Street, on the near east side of Green Bay. Weaver will join EPA Asst. Administrator David Ross (from Washington D.C.'s Office of Water), Green Bay Mayor Eric Genrich, and Green Bay Water Utility General Manager, Nancy Quirk in addressing the media at 10 A.M., followed by an opportunity for the public to watch the last lead service being removed from the streets of Green Bay (located directly next to the press conference).
In an ambitious effort to be the first major city in Wisconsin to voluntarily remove and eliminate all lead pipes from the city, the Green Bay Water Utility is grateful for the leadership of Sen. Rob Cowles, who help change the law in order to make lead service replacements more seamless for Wisconsin homeowners, as well as the Green Bay City Council members, who passed the ordinance to replace private lead services, authorized $300,000 of the Lambeau tax credit to pay for private lead service replacement and passed a resolution to accept funds that DNR made available through the Safe Drinking Water Loan Program (SDWLP).
'It's been an ambitious goal, and a tremendous challenge, but we are happy to see this project successfully completed. As we start to wrap things up, we need to thank those who have been working tirelessly on this project to ensure we meet the deadline,' said Nancy Quirk, P.E., General Manager of Green Bay Water Utility.
According to research conducted by the water utility in 2011, levels of lead in the water in some homes were above the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's preferred limit. This led to the conduction of corrosion studies, with the assistance of the DNR to establish a plan of action that saw the removal of all harmful and outdated lead pipes in the city and homes.
To date, team efforts and research identified 1,781 utility-owned and 247 privately-owned lead service lines. Approximately 2,800 homes were investigated, with utility staff actually entering each home to expertly review the homeowner's pipe materials. The process cost Green Bay Water Utility more than $6 million, and no homeowner paid out of pocket to have their lead replaced.
Mayor Eric Genrich, homeowner Deb Weaver, Nancy Quirk and Asst. Administrator Ross will be available for interviews afterward the brief press conference and lead removal photo op. Sen. Cowles, members of the Green Bay Water Commission and Green Bay Ctiy Council will also be on hand.
'This wouldn't have been possible without all those involved. Several years ago, it may have even seemed impossible, but here we are, at the end of the line,' says Quirk. With the press conference taking place in a couple of days, those involved in the project are both proud and honored to become a leading Midwestern city in regard to the safety and health of public water service lines.
For more information about Green Bay Water Utility and the lead pipe removal project, visit their website at, [To enable links contact
MENAFN]
Green Bay Water Utility
Andrea Hay, Director of Communications
+1 920-621-7726
email us here
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