Report Lead Service Pipes In West Orange, NJ American Water Says

WEST ORANGE, NJ — The clock is officially ticking on a state-mandated deadline to replace every lead water service line in New Jersey by 2031, including in West Orange. And New Jersey American Water is among the suppliers that are asking their customers to help them make a big job a little bit easier.

Two years ago, Gov. Phil Murphy signed a package of bills that drastically changed how New Jersey deals with the threat of lead poisoning, which can be especially dangerous for kids, pregnant women and other vulnerable populations.

One of the laws will require hundreds of community water systems in New Jersey to replace their lead service lines within 10 years. Read More: New Jersey Is Replacing Its Lead Water Pipes (All Of Them)

Service pipes – which connect homes and businesses to the local water supply – can potentially leach contamination as water passes through them, including lead. A portion of the pipes may be privately owned, complicating efforts to replace them.

Water suppliers across the state have begun rolling out their own plans to comply with the state law ahead of the deadline.

Last week, New Jersey American Water launched an education campaign across the company’s service areas – including West Orange – asking customers to self-identify and report the material of the service line that brings water into their home.

New Jersey American Water serves the following towns in Essex County.

Franchise Customers

• Cedar Grove Township (part)
• Irvington Township
• Livingston Township (part)
• Maplewood Township
• Millburn Township
• North Caldwell Borough (part)
• West Orange Township

Resale Customers

• Township of Livingston
• Township of South Orange Village

Customer-owned water service lines have historically not been tracked by water utilities, making an inventory of customer-owned service lines a necessary step in the process.

And that’s why New Jersey American Water is looking for a little help from its customers, spokespeople said:

“New Jersey American Water is asking their customers to help support the effort by locating and identifying their water service line and submitting a survey with their findings. This can be done in three easy steps and using simple household items such as a magnet and a coin to identify the material of the water service line. The instructions on how to identify your line – including a video tutorial – and a special portal to submit your findings can be found here … Customers with unknown service line material listed in New Jersey American Water’s published inventory will begin to see information about the campaign through emails from the company, on social media, and in targeted digital, cable and outdoor advertising.”

As part of the program, New Jersey American Water continues to replace lead and galvanized service lines where other infrastructure projects are occurring, as well as based on the prioritization plan for the company’s 30 public water systems that scores communities’ census tracts by health risk factors, the company said.

New Jersey American Water noted:

“It is important to note that if your service lines contain lead, it does not mean you cannot use water as you normally do. New Jersey American Water regularly tests for lead in drinking water and the water delivered to customers meets state and federal water quality regulations, including those set for lead.”

Mark McDonough, president of New Jersey American Water, said complying with the state’s law is a “top priority.”

“The first step in accomplishing this goal, in the most efficient and cost-effective way, is to know where they are so we can remove them in a coordinated method, street-by-street and town-by-town,” McDonough said.

“By educating and empowering our customers to participate in this easy way, we can help accelerate the program more expeditiously than the law’s 2031 deadline,” McDonough said. “We look forward to partnering with our customers, municipalities and other key stakeholders within the communities we serve over the coming months and years to work together towards this goal of replacing all lead service lines statewide once and for all.”

New Jersey American Water, a subsidiary of American Water, is the largest investor-owned water utility in the state. It provides water and wastewater services to about 2.8 million people.

• See Related: Water Main Replacement In West Orange Is Part Of $2.9M Project

Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com. Learn more about advertising on Patch here. Find out how to post announcements or events to your local Patch site. Don’t forget to visit the Patch West Orange Facebook page.