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Here's How To Find Out If Your Water Lines Are Lead

Creative Commons

Louisville Water Company customers can now find out whether their water service lines are made of lead.

The online tool -- which you can find here -- shows whether the lines stretching from a water main to a property’s meter are made of the material, which can cause health problems.

Customers whose lines are lead can request a water quality sample kit from the agency to test for lead levels in their home's water supply.

“If you’re a homeowner and you see that it looks like your service line is made of lead, you can also know that Louisville Water will be in your neighborhood in the next few years to replace that line," said Kelley Dearing Smith, a spokeswoman for the Water Company.

Smith said about 7,700 lead service lines remain across Louisville. That’s about 3 percent of all service lines. Company officials hope to have all lead lines replaced by 2025; they expect to spend $2.3 million this year replacing some 1,000 lead lines.

About 6 percent of private lines are made of lead. Private lines are not included in the new Water Company database and are the landowner's responsibility.

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Jacob Ryan is the managing editor of the Kentucky Center for Investigative reporting. He's an award-winning investigative reporter who joined LPM in 2014. Email Jacob at jryan@lpm.org.

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