By Frank Brill, EnviroPolitics Editor
Remember the troubling headlines in 2014 about the corroded lead pipes that threatened residents (especially infants and children) in Flint, MI? And the subsequent water scare in 2018 that lead Newark, NJ to replace a large number of household water lines and provide filters to others?
Despite those costly and well publicized remediations, utilities in New Jersey are still not required to inform their customers about the status of their drinking water.
That could change under new legislation sponsored by Assembly Democrats Bill Moen (D-Camden, Gloucester), Lisa Swain (D-Bergen, Passaic), and Christopher Tully (D-Bergen, Passaic). Their bill, A-2863, was released unanimously on February 22 by the Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee.
It would supplement the “Safe Water Drinking Act” by requiring public water systems to provide to their customers, local health agencies, and municipal governments expedited written notice of lead levels that exceed the “lead action level”.
Related environmental news stories:
Where things stand in the Flint water crisis
Fighting for safe drinking water in Newark, New Jersey.
Under the legislation, the written notice would:
(1) clearly state that the public water system is in exceedance of the lead action level;
(2) explain what the lead action level is and the measurement process that the public water system is required to perform to monitor drinking water for lead;
(3) provide additional information on the possible sources of lead in drinking water, the health effects of lead in drinking water, and measures a customer can take to reduce or eliminate lead in drinking water; and
(4) state the responsibility of a landlord to distribute the notice to all tenants served by the public water system.
Additionally, the bill requires landlords to provide all tenants with any notice or information received from a public water system concerning the presence of lead in drinking water.
Specifically, the bill requires the landlord to:
(1) distribute the notice or information to every tenant who has entered into a lease agreement with the landlord and whose dwelling unit is served by the public water system; and
(2) post the notice or information in a prominent location at the entrance of each rental premises that is owned by the landlord and served by the public water system.
The bill also requires a public water system to include a statement explaining these requirements in any notice or information provided to its customers concerning the presence of lead in drinking water.
The bill was amended today (updated version) on the Assembly floor, along with an identical measure, S968, and is in position for a final vote before moving the Governor Murphy’s desk.
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