Malden makes progress toward a lead-free water system

Support Malden’s efforts to identify lead service lines this December

In October, the City of Malden completed an inventory of the water service lines in our public water system. Water service lines are the pipes that carry water from the water lines in the street to Malden’s homes, schools and other buildings. The inventory lists the type of material for each service line – whether it’s copper, galvanized steel, lead or plastic. To find out the type of material of your service line, check out the service line inventory map on the City’s website at https://www.cityofmalden.org/222/Find-out-if-You-Have-Lead-Service-Lines

Completing the inventory was an important step in the City’s effort to identify and replace 100% of the lead service lines in the public water system. To complete the inventory, City staff and others went door-to-door to provide educational information, set up appointments and inspect water service lines. The City received help for this work from Clean Water Action, GDIT and Fuss & O’Neill, all of whose support was funded through federal grants at no cost to the City. GDIT‘s support is funded through the national Get the Lead Out (GLO) initiative of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Despite these efforts, Malden’s water service line inventory still has some gaps: water service lines of unknown material type. During the week of December 11, Malden staff and GDIT’s GLO team will be back, going door-to-door to inspect service lines and fill in these gaps.

If a City team shows up at your door, please do your part and let them inspect your water service line. The team will need access to the basement. The inspection takes less than five minutes. All City staff and others will have IDs and badges. Be safe – please ask to see ID.

If you would rather schedule an inspection appointment, please call the Malden Engineering Department at 781-397-7040. You can also inspect the service line yourself and send the results to the City using an online survey at https://www.cityofmalden.org/216/Information-on-Lead-in-Drinking-Water. Instructions are provided when you click on the survey link.

More information about lead in drinking water

Malden’s water is routinely tested for lead and the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA), the regional water supplier, treats the water to minimize corrosion of lead from older pipes. During this year’s tests, more than 10% of the tap water samples collected in Malden exceeded the drinking water action level for lead of 0.015 mg/L (or 15 parts per billion). Even when the drinking water delivered to homes and other buildings meets all standards, lead can enter the water when it passes through lead service lines and older pipes, faucets and fixtures in the home.

To find out more about actions being taken by Malden and MWRA and to learn what you can do to protect yourself and your family from lead exposure in drinking water, read “Information on Lead in Drinking Water,” which is posted at the Engineering Department on the City of Malden website. If you have questions, please call the Engineering Department at 781-397-7040 or send an email to leadinfo@cityofmalden.org.