the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Governor Phil Murphy today reaffirmed his commitment to address lead exposure in New Jersey and its harmful effects on public health and child development by signing a package of bills aimed protecting New Jersey’s families from lead poisoning. The legislation, which will require regular inspections for, and the remediation of, lead-based paint hazards in residential rental properties and require the inventory, replacement, and financing of lead service lines throughout the state within the next 10 years, will advance New Jersey as a national leader in lead poisoning prevention. In October 2019, Governor Murphy unveiled a comprehensive statewide plan to address lead exposure in New Jersey, in which exposure to lead-based paint and lead in drinking water were two key elements of the strategy.
“In October of 2019, I put forth a multifaceted statewide plan to protect New Jersey’s children and families from the dangers of lead, and today, we are taking a significant step forward in our strategy to reduce lead exposure in our homes,” said Governor Murphy. “Modernizing our aging water infrastructure with new lead services lines is critical in ensuring safe drinking water flows through our communities. In addition to replacing service lines, we must also go further to protect those in older homes and apartments where door jambs and window sashes may be coated in decades of layers of lead-based paints, creating fine particulates that are unknowingly inhaled and ingested. Today, we are taking the most aggressive action in the nation to reduce lead-based paint exposure in our homes and communities, which is a critical victory for public health and environmental justice, and advances New Jersey as a national leader in lead poisoning prevention.”
Lead-based paints were banned for residential use in 1978. Homes built in the U.S. before 1978 are likely to have some lead-based paint. When the paint peels and cracks, it makes lead paint chips and dust. Any surface covered with lead-based paint where the paint may wear by rubbing or friction is likely to cause lead dust including windows, doors, floors, porches, stairways, and cabinets.
As part of a three-bill package signed by Governor Murphy, water companies will be allowed to raise rates on property owners to pay for the pipe replacements, though it’s possible federal funds could help cover the estimated $2.65 billion undertaking. New Jersey will replace all its lead water pipes within the next decade in a new plan to comprehensively address the longstanding health hazard lurking in homes and schools throughout the state.
Ridgewood Water previously reported that since the addition of corrosion control treatment to the RW distribution system in May 2016, lead levels have drastically declined as determined by our sampling program (see graph) as regulated by NJDEP. The sample results indicate that the corrosion control treatment has been extremely successful at reducing the levels of lead in drinking water, with 2019 samples producing the lowest levels of lead in Ridgewood Water’s history.