April 30, 2024
Last week, a letter went out to many of our water utility customers concerning the Lead Service Line Replacement Program taking place in the State of Illinois. This letter was required notification language, directly dictated by the EPA, to inform Illinois residents about the risks of lead service lines in water systems. We realize that this letter was confusing to some and left many with additional questions about the program. Below is an attempt to provide some additional clarity on this program, and what exactly is taking place in Geneseo and across the State of Illinois.
Illinois’ Lead Service Line Replacement and Notification Act requires operators of community water supplies, such as Geneseo’s Water Utility, to develop and maintain a complete material inventory of lead service lines, and to implement a comprehensive plan for the replacement of those lines according to prescribed timelines based on the number of lead service lines reported in the material inventory. The inventory process started in April of 2022, through surveys to each of our water customers, as a first step at identifying the resident side of water services across town. Inventory efforts for the program will be ongoing and will continue to take place through 2027. The inventory efforts are designed to categorize each service line for the public water utility. There are four categories that make up each service line type being tracked in our inventory:
“Non-Lead” means a service line made of any material other than lead or galvanized material (ex. copper and plastic).
“Lead Service Line” means a service line made of lead or a service line connected to a lead pigtail, lead gooseneck, or other lead fitting.
“Galvanized Requiring Replacement” means any galvanized material that may be supplied through a lead gooseneck attached to the water main.
“Unknown” means a service line that is likely to be made of lead material.
Determination of the type of service line is based off of information sources that Geneseo is using for the project including: City of Geneseo customer surveys, construction records, plumbing records, and water department information on location and age of infrastructure in our neighborhoods. It is important to note that the receipt of a letter at this juncture in the project does not confirm that your residence is served by a lead service line. Many residences currently fall into the “Unknown” category, due to the fact that additional studies must occur over the next three years to confirm that both the city’s portion of a service line, as well as the residential side of the line, are determined to be in a specific category. Final confirmation of lead service lines is planned to be accomplished through exposure of the service lines at the curb box, along with studies of construction mapping. The City is required and will continue updating and evaluating the material inventory list through April of 2027. During this timeframe, we will be identifying more service lines via construction records, plumbing records and unearthing test holes in order to evaluate water lines.
Additionally, the City’s plan for future lead line replacement was just submitted and is currently under review by the EPA. Special informational meetings and communications will be established in the coming years as implementation of an approved replacement plan is solidified.
For additional information, please contact the Utility Office at City Hall: 309-944-6419