Water Quality Testing Differs Between Chicago and Other Cities

July 19th, 2016

Following the water crisis in Flint, Michigan, people across the nation have started asking more questions about their own water’s lead content. To help contextualize the testing procedures in Chicago, we are providing a comparison to two other major U.S. cities: New York and Los Angeles.

All public water systems are required by the EPA to test water taps in residential homes for lead contamination. A look at the most recent round of testing in America’s three most populated cities shows that while all three followed EPA requirements, there are important testing and reporting variations that can affect the quality of drinking water for residents.

Public School Testing

Although the EPA requires residential lead testing, there is no federal requirement for testing public schools. A 1996 court case struck down provisions in the federal Safe Water Drinking Act requiring school testing, and left those regulations up to state government. However, school districts in New York and Los Angeles voluntarily tested their own taps years ago.

Los Angeles Unified School District began testing some schools in 1988. The same year, they adopted a mandatory flushing program, requiring water fountains and faucets to run for 30 seconds before use every day. The EPA suggests this basic remedy to reduce the lead contamination that occurs when water sits in pipes overnight. In 2008, the District tested all schools again, and they are currently reviewing those results to continue remediation measures.

Click here to view the full report.

Back

Updates

Water Quality Testing Differs Between Chicago and Other Cities

Join RFI's Mailing List