By Charlene Tebbutt

City hoping more homeowners sign on to replace lead pipes

Nov 16, 2018 | 4:43 PM

The City of Prince Albert is working to replace some 750 lead pipes connecting pre-war era homes in the city, and staff hope to encourage more residents to sign on to replace lead service connections on their properties at the same time.  

City administration wants to encourage residents to update lead pipes on their properties as work is also being done to update the city portion. Public Works Director Wes Hicks wants to be clear that there is no lead in the city’s water supply, but said it can leach into water as it passes through older lead piping.

The city has already replaced 350 lead service connections since 2007, Hicks told paNOW. If the city is already planning to dig up the road to replace the lead pipes up to the residential property line, Hicks said it makes sense to give residents notice of the work earlier in case they decide to replace the pipes on their side at the same time.

City administrators hope to do more communication around the idea to encourage residents to plan for replacements.

“We’re actively removing them as we come across them in our water and sewer replacements,” Hicks said. “What we’re trying to encourage is for the residents who have them, is to take that opportunity to replace their portion from the property line to the house.”

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For residents with lead piping on their properties, Hicks said the replacements would involve digging up the yard and hiring a contractor to replace the pipes ouside the home and then redoing the yard’s landscaping. If the homeowner decides to replace the pipes inside the home as well, interior renovations would also be required.

Hicks said the cost of replacing lead pipes on each property can vary depending on the distance to the house from the street and the type of landscaping in the yard.

“These are the very oldest homes in the city,” Hicks added. “Lead pipe was a normal practice throughout all of the world before they started using copper, and then even copper has stopped and now they use polyethylene.”

Hicks said it’s too early to say yet which streets will be up for pipe replacements come spring, but the city will first target areas that are also in need of new pavement and new services. City council also decided to allocate $60,000 per year for unplanned upgrades in cases where homeowners decide to upgrade their portion of the connector.

“We would do our portion right after they do their portion,” he added.

Mayor Greg Dionne said at a city council earlier this week that some homeowners may not want to replace their portion of the lead pipe on their property as the pipes inside would still contain lead.

An incentive program giving residents $2,000 toward the cost of replacing their lead pipes was discontinued in 2012, Hicks said. However, only a handful of residents actually took advantage of the program, he said.

Charlene.tebbutt@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @CharleneTebbutt