836-L«ncm>r Farming, Saturday. June 4,1994
Lead From Well Pumps Can Contaminate Drinking Water
UNIVERSITY PARK (Centre
Co.) An estimated 750,000
Pennsylvanians may be in danger
of getting “pumped full of lead.”
The lead is coming for submer-
sible well pumps and getting rid of
it could be expensive, says a water
quality expert in Penn Stale’s Col
lege of Agricultural Sciences and
the Environmental Resources
Research Institute.
“A recent study has found that
many of these pumps could be
leaching high amounts of lead into
private water supplies," says Wil
liam Sharpe, professor of forest
hydrology. •
“Pennsylvania has more than a
million individual private water
systems that provide an estimated
2.5.mi11i0n people with drinking
water, he says. “Most of these sys
tems are deep wells fed by
groundwater, and about 20,000
new wells are drilled in the state
each year. Since no government
agency monitors private systems,
those who rely on individual wells
should have their water tested and
take action if necessary.”
Submersible well pumps made
of stainless steel and plastic do not
cause any lead problems.
But most pumps are constructed
with brass fittings and housings.
Brass alloys used in such pumps
contain lead. If water coming from
a well is corrosive, meaning it is
soft and acidic, lead can dissolve
into drinking water, posing a
potential health risk.
“If your water is not corrosive,
you probably won’t have a lead
problem,” says Sharpe.
Children and fetuses are at
greatest risk from lead exposure.
Once in the bloodstream, lead can
cause serious neurological dam
age, loss of IQ, mental retardation
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and other problems. Lead also
may cause hypertension, hearing
loss and kidney and liver damage.
Penn Slate research has been
shown how often lead is found in
Pennsylvania’s private water sup
plies. “We sampled about 1,600
individual supplies from around
the slate,” says Sharpe. “About 20
percent had lead concentrations
larger than the Environmental
Protection agency’s action level of
15 parts per billion, and nearly 30
percent exceeded 10 parts per bil
lion, which is considered unac
ceptable by many in the environ
mental health community. That
means about 750,000 rural Pen
nsylvanians may be exposed to
excessive lead.
“In most cases, lead in drinking
water is thought to come primarily
from lead-soldered plumbing
joints,” he says. “We dbn’t know
exactly how much well pump fit
tings are contributing to the
problem.”
To find out, homeowners with
wells should have their water
tested. “To do this take a first
draw sample from your faucet first
thing in the morning,” Sharpe
explains. “The let the water run
for 30 seconds or longer and take a
second sample. Comparing this to
the first-draw sample will help
determine how much lead is com
ing from your well and how much
is coming from your inside
plumbing.”
The samples should be tested
by a firm certified to check for
lead. A list of certified testing
firms is available from any county
office of Penn Stale Cooperative
Extension.
If excessive lead is found to be
coming from a well pump, a
homeowner has several options.
• Contact a well-driller to have
the pump’s brass fittings replaced.
• Install a point-ef-use
treatment system that removes
lead, “y/e usually recommend
activated aluminum or reverse
osmosis treatment systems,” says
Sharpe. “The January 1990 and
February 1993 issues of Consum
er Reports, available in most libra
ries, contain useful reviews of lead
removal treatment equipment.”
• Use bottled water for drinking
and cooking.
If high levels of lead are found
to be comimg only from leaded
components of your inside plumb
ing, you have another option.
“Since it takes about an hour for
lead to begin leaching from pipes,
let the water run for about 30 sec
onds to flush any water that’s been
in the pipes for more than an
hour,” says Sharpe. “Your tap
water then should be safe to drink.
To conserve water, do this once in
the morning, fill a container and
place it in your refrigerator. That
water can be used for drinking the
rest of the day.
“But if the lead is coming from
your pump, this method won’t
work because you can't very easi- lead in drinking water or house
ly flush all the water out of your hold water testing, contact the
well.” Penn State Cooperative Extension
For more information about office in your county.
Extension Plans
June Programs
June 13, 6:00-9:30 p.m., at the
Chester County Extension office
in the Government Services Cen
ter. This 16-hour program is for
those who have a food service
establishment or those required to
have a certified food sanitation
manager on site.
Is a home-based business for
you? Learn how to turn “Your
Crafts Business” into a successful
enterprise on Thursday, June 16,
9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., at Bent
ley’s Restaurant, Routes 202 &
63. North Wales.
For further information or
registration information about
these and other programs avail
able through Penn State Coopera
tive Extension, contact the Ches
ter County Extension office at
(610) 696-3500.
WEST CHESTER (Chester
Co.) Penn State Cooperative
Extension will be sponsoring sev
eral programs of interest in June
including educational exhibits for
those interested inn sewing, need
lework and textile crafts at the
Creative Festival, June 3-5, Shera
ton Convention Center in Valley
Forge.
“Train the Trainer on Life
Skills” on Wednesday, June 8,
10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the
Chester County Extension office
in the Government Services Cen
ter, is designed to help agency per
sonnel and volunteers in commun
ity education address basic life
skills education for their clientele.
The Certified Food Safety &
Sanitation Course begins Monday.