Congressman Amo Announces Over $28 Million for Rhode Island Lead Pipe Replacement

Latest round of EPA funding advances commitment to replace every lead pipe in the nation, protect public health and help deliver safe drinking water
 

PAWTUCKET, RI – Today, Congressman Amo (RI-01) released the following statement after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced $28,650,000 from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda to help Rhode Island identify and replace lead service lines, preventing exposure to lead in drinking water. Today’s announcement, funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and available through EPA’s successful Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF), takes another major step to advance the Congressman and the Biden-Harris administration’s commitment to environmental justice.

“Toxic lead has no place in our water infrastructure,” said Congressman Gabe Amo. “I’m proud Congressional Democrats passed the historic Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and that the Biden-Harris Administration has invested more than $85 million total to replace every lead pipe in Rhode Island. These are real dollars being put toward improving our communities. I will continue to work alongside my colleagues in Rhode Island and across the greater New England region who are committed to guaranteeing safe drinking water in every home and every community.”

“The science is clear, there is no safe level of lead exposure, and the primary source of harmful exposure in drinking water is through lead pipes,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “President Biden understands it is critical to identify and remove lead pipes as quickly as possible, and he has secured significant resources for states and territories to accelerate the permanent removal of dangerous lead pipes once and for all.”

“Replacing aging lead pipes is a serious public health priority for communities across the nation, including here in Rhode Island. This new wave of $28.65 million in federal funding for the Ocean State will put people to work safeguarding the health of our communities and ensuring safe drinking water for all,” said U.S. Senator Jack Reed, a member of the Appropriations Committee who has championed initiatives to address lead hazards and eliminate childhood lead exposure.

“Our Bipartisan Infrastructure Law continues to deliver significant upgrades to Rhode Island’s water infrastructure,” said Senator Sheldon Whitehouse. “Lead poisoning is a completely preventable tragedy that can have lifelong effects on a child. As we replace old lead pipes and service lines, more families will have safe water from the tap and more kids will grow up healthy.”

“Every Rhode Islander deserves access to clean drinking water, yet there are still thousands of households in our state that receive their water through lead service lines,” said Rep. Seth Magaziner. “This federal funding will replace these dangerous lead pipes and upgrade our water infrastructure to protect the health and wellbeing of communities across Rhode Island.”

BACKGROUND
President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law invests a historic $15 billion to identify and replace lead service lines. The law mandates that 49% of funds provided through the DWSRF General Supplemental Funding and DWSRF Lead Service Line Replacement Funding must be provided as grants and forgivable loans to disadvantaged communities, a crucial investment for communities that have been underinvested in for too long. EPA projects a national total of 9 million lead services lines across the country, based on data collected from the updated 7th Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment. The funding announced today will be provided specifically for lead service line identification and replacement and will help every state and territory fund projects to remove lead pipes and reduce exposure to lead from drinking water.

Alongside the funding announced today, EPA is also releasing a new memorandum that clarifies how states can use this and other funding to most effectively reduce exposure to lead in drinking water. Additionally, EPA has developed new outreach documents to help water systems educate their customers on drinking water issues, health impacts of lead exposure, service line ownership, and how customers can support the identification of potential lead service lines in their homes.

The Biden-Harris Administration’s ambitious initiative to remove lead pipes has already delivered significant results for families across the nation. Today’s latest funding will ensure more families benefit from these unprecedented resources, and support projects like these:

• The City of Providence has received $12,887,000 through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to replace lead service lines within the Providence Water distribution area.
• The City of East Providence has received $100,000 through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to identify and replace lead service lines as the City installs new water meters throughout their service area

To view more stories about how the unpreceded investments from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law are transforming communities across the country, visit EPA’s Investing in America’s Water Infrastructure Story Map. To read more about some additional projects that are underway, see EPA’s recently released Quarterly Report on Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Funded Clean Water and Drinking Water SRF projects and explore the State Revolving Funds Public Portal.

For more information, including state-by-state allotment of 2024 funding, and a breakdown of EPA’s lead Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, please visit EPA’s Drinking Water website.

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