Today, October 8, the Biden-Harris Administration issued a final rule requiring drinking water systems across the country to identify and replace lead pipes within 10 years. The Lead and Copper Rule Improvements also require more rigorous testing of drinking water and a lower threshold requiring communities to take action to protect people from lead exposure in water.
Environmental health expert, Jun Wu, PhD, professor of environmental and occupational health at UC Irvine Joe C. Wen School of Population & Public Health has been researching about the harmful effects of lead exposure for years. For children, especially those living in unmonitored hot spots with levels exceeding both state and federal guidelines, exposure to even low levels of lead have shown to negatively affect learning outcomes, ability to pay attention and academic achievement.
"The Environemtal Protection Agency's (EPA) recent announcement that requires water utilities to replace all lead pipes within a decade is huge news," says Wu. "It’s well-documented that Black, Latino and low-income children over 5 in the U.S. are disproportionately exposed to lead relative to white, non-Latino kids and children of higher income earners. The EPA's decision is crucial in our fight against the lead contamination crisis we are facing throughout the U.S."
To speak with Jun Wu, contact Katelyn Ogawa, communications and media relations manager, at [email protected].
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