Biden Administration Delays Trump Changes To Lead and Copper Rule
As former President Donald Trump’s first term drew to a close, his administration issued environmental regulations that had not yet gone into effect as President Biden took office. When it comes to the country’s drinking water, perhaps the most critical of all of these new regulations was an attempted change to the federal Lead and Copper Rule.
The Trump administration changes to the rule would require cities to more quickly inform consumers when they are potentially exposed to lead in drinking water. It would also grant these cities up to 30 years to replace the underlying drinking water infrastructure that leaches lead into supplies and causes contamination.
Biden quickly issued a “freeze” on the new regulations, and now his administration has announced that it is delaying implementation of the Lead and Copper Rule changes until at least June 17, though they were supposed to go into effect in mid-March.
“Radhika Fox, the [U.S. EPA’s] acting assistant administrator for water, said in the statement that the EPA is extending the rule so it can review it and ‘fully consult with stakeholders, including those that have been disproportionately impacted by lead in drinking water,’” The Hill reported. “‘It is essential that EPA takes the time now to review this important rule to ensure that we are protecting current and future generations,’ Fox said.”
It’s unclear how the EPA could further alter the Lead and Copper Rule under President Biden. But drinking water quality advocates are hoping that it will address the threshold at which lead contamination requires attention from utilities, among other things.
“The [Trump administration’s version of the rule] does not enact a stricter limit on lead levels in water, which advocates say is necessary to protect health,” per The Hill. “The rule creates a 10 parts per billion (ppb) ‘trigger’ level at which cities would need to reevaluate their water treatment processes and possibly add corrosion-control chemicals to city water.”
Whatever changes are ahead, environmental advocates appear pleased with the delay to the Trump administration revisions.
“We commend EPA for delaying a rule that clearly fails to protect not just children’s health, but also the drinking water of millions of people,” Earthjustice, a nonprofit environmental law group, announced. “We are confident that after listening to the most affected communities, and the science, EPA will implement a rule that will actually protect disserved people. Everyone can agree it is time the country ends lead poisoning once and for all.”
To read more about how lead can contaminate drinking water, visit Water Online’s Drinking Water Distribution Solutions Center.