Illinois has become another state dealing with lead contamination problems. Illinois has more service line pipes made with toxic metals than any state in the nation. In a measure of tap water, researchers found up to thousands of parts per billion of lead. For context, his number is comparable to the findings in Flint Michigan during the same time. In a small suburb called University Park samples contained 5,300 parts per billion. The mayor of this town took office one month before the discovery, and recounted his experience to the Chicago Tribune. “There is no training for a water crisis,’ he says, ‘The experience has been horrible, and it’s still horrible.” There has been little action over the last ten years to combat these contaminations, regulations allowing companies to hide their issues.
The Biden Administration has begun efforts to reduce the danger and cut out regulations that halted progress. The director of the Natural Resources Defense Council urged the EPA to replace every service line in the country. He says “Until then they should be providing filters”. Unfortunately the challenge within Illinois seems almost insurmountable. All homes built in the state before 1987 were required to be built with lead. Officials endeavored to hide these issues from the public for years, only testing water in specific locations. Most homes where the water was tested were owned by people linked to the water department and people living in affluent areas. These efforts to hide the danger have prolonged the danger for Illinois citizens, but winds are changing. With the new EPA efforts to replace service lines and provide filters, there is hope for change in the state.
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