Clean Water

What contributes to clean, safe drinking water? Numerous elements and minerals are present in our drinking water. Some occur naturally. Others enter or "leach" into the water from materials that come in contact with drinking water.

Some of these elements are linked to emotional issues; most notably, lead. Below are the facts about lead and drinking water in the United States.

About Lead and Plumbing Systems
Clean Water and Faucets
Clean Water and Imported Plumbing Products

About Lead and Plumbing Systems

Why does lead exist at all in plumbing products? The answer goes back literally thousands of years to the first plumbing systems, which are named for the word "lead" in Latin, plumbum. Lead has a unique ability to resist pinhole leaks, while being soft enough to form into shapes that deliver water most efficiently.

Lead was used in many other common products as well until scientific advancements in the 20th century demonstrated the toxicity of lead. The plumbing industry was among many industries that voluntarily took significant steps to reduce lead exposure, although small amounts of lead continue to exist in products that come in contact with drinking water.

Aging infrastructure, including pipe and plumbing system components, are the main contributors of trace amounts of lead in the water supply. Nearly all homes built prior to the 1980s still have lead solder connecting the copper pipes. All faucets contain minute amounts of lead, which is one of the metals used to create many types of brass.

Brass is an ancient material composed mainly of copper and zinc. Small amounts of other alloying elements are also added to various types of brasses to address the requirements of specific applications. In the plumbing fitting industry, lead has traditionally been added to various brass alloys. In castings, the lead has been used to help seal microscopic pores in the alloy to produce pressure-tight parts. It also has been shown to inhibit corrosion, and greatly improves the machinability of the material in both cast and drawn (rod) alloys – an important consideration during manufacturing.

In recent years, a number of brass alloys have largely replaced the added lead. These materials include bismuth, silicon, selenium, and phosphorous, all of which provide different material properties, depending on the amount used and method of processing. While none yet effectively duplicates the performance of leaded brass, several types have been employed by some plumbing fitting manufacturers for certain applications.

But faucets are far from the only source of lead in drinking water. Major U.S. cities still have 100 percent lead pipes bringing water from the utilities to homes and businesses. How can that be? A thin biofilm has developed over the decades to coat those pipes, and water chemistry is carefully controlled, preventing dangerous levels of lead from entering the drinking water system.

Still, it is essential to the nation's health that these systems be upgraded, a task estimated by the EPA in 2003 to cost $276.8 billion and take more than 20 years achieve. In the meantime, the best protection for the U.S. public is the ongoing testing and monitoring of what makes up our drinking water.

The amount of lead and other minerals that actually leach into the water is far more critical than how much is used to manufacture the products that come in contact with the drinking water. The EPA allows faucets to be sold in the United States that do not leach more than 11 parts per billion of the lead into water during a 20-day test. That is similar to a teaspoon of water in an Olympic-sized pool. The EPA's criteria is in accordance with the federal Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), taking into account the extremes of potable water chemistry that interact with the pipes and faucets across the United States. Contrary to some erroneous claims, faucets do not increase the amount of minerals that are leached over time.

Clean Water and Faucets

Most bathroom faucets sold in the United States and around the world are made from brass, a mix of copper, zinc and a minute amount of lead. Lead seals microscopic cracks that occur between the copper and zinc crystals as they cool, and provides the malleability for brass to be forged and converted into the machined components that are vital parts of every faucet. In 2006, the American Waterworks Association Research Foundation (AWWARF) concluded that faucet lead levels in the United States leach less than 2 parts per billion, far below the allowable 11 parts per billion.

In the fall of 2007, California passed AB 1953, a law that requires all faucets sold in the state after January 1, 2010, to contain no more than 0.25 percent lead. The law does not address lead levels in the drinking water itself, which remains subject to the terms of the state's Proposition 65.

AB 1953 has created a race against the clock for manufacturers, not unlike the legislative deadlines imposed on the industry in the 1990s to reduce flush volumes in toilets. As of early 2008, it is unclear whether using alternative alloys in faucets will resist leaching and meet the conditions of the SDWA. Manufacturers are testing and innovating literally 24/7 in laboratories around the world to meet the requirements of California's laws and its residents, most especially in the area of public safety.

Clean Water and Imported Plumbing Products

EPA officials addressing the Plumbing Manufacturers Institute Fall 2007 Meeting said that the EPA has reason to believe that faucets are being imported into the United States that contain lead in excess of the SDWA requirements of 11 parts per billion.

EPA is coordinating with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to identify imports that violate U.S. standards, working with environmental and law enforcement agencies to share information about noncompliant or suspect imports. Learn more on EPA's special import site by visiting here.

For more information on any of these topics, visit the drinking water section of the EPA website.