The Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County has the cash on hand to start ripping out approximately 1,000 lead water lines in its five-county network.
The Pennsylvania Infrastructure Investment Authority came through earlier this month with a $4.6 million grant and a $5.4 million loan to fund most of the project.
Michael Kukura, the authority’s manager, told TribLive last month he was only banking on the loan.
“We just anticipated we weren’t going to get a grant and prepared for the worst,” Kukura said.
With that, residents of Apollo, East Vandergrift, Hyde Park, Leechburg, North Apollo, Parks, Vandergrift and West Leechburg will see extensive work in the coming years.
Apollo, North Apollo and Vandergrift are particularly in need of new pipes, according to a recent inventory by the authority. While, overall, just over 4,000, or 3% of the authority’s 123,000 customers may have lead pipes, parts of the aforementioned three towns could have almost half of the service lines made from lead.
Kukura and officials in these communities attributed the prevalence of lead service lines to the age of the water system there.
The state banned the use of lead pipes in 1991. Water providers have until 2027 to start replacing them and until 2037 to complete that work under a rule authorized by the Biden administration.
Lead pipes are known to cause damage to key organs, stunt childhood development and cause other severe harm. No amount of lead is considered safe in drinking water.
Annual testing has found no discernible lead in the authority’s water supply.
Lead pipe replacement deadlines could go away under the Trump administration, which has already rescinded several environmental rules with enactment dates spanning roughly a half-century.
If that were to happen, Kukura said the authority “would still work through this, just to keep upgrading the system naturally.”
The authority has yet to pin down a timeline for the work, other than the federally prescribed deadlines.
Local officials expressed approval for the project, even as they possessed limited information.
Vandergrift Council President Tom Holmes said he hasn’t spoken directly with the authority on the topic.
Apollo Councilman Mark Tarle said he’s looking forward to work getting underway, “other than having the roads all dug up again.”
Kukura assured officials the authority will try to coordinate with existing projects, such as road paving plans in Apollo, to minimize disruptions and avoid redundant work.
Altogether, the project is expected to cost $11 million. The non-funded remainder and loan payback will be covered, in part, by a 9.5% sewage and water rake hike slated for April.
Residents also may have to pay to replace the pipes leading directly to their homes. A loan program is being considered where residents would see a monthly charge for lead pipe removal, rather than a one-time cost, according to Kukura.
