By Rebecca Malpass

Rebecca Malpass

New Orleans is among the top ten cities in America with the most lead pipes, with at least 57,000 pipes across the city needing replacement. The trouble is, we don’t know where all of them are located or how much lead residents are exposed to through their tap water.

Lead exposure from tap water is typically caused by lead-pipe corrosion. Lead pipes can exist in the city’s underground infrastructure (the “public side” of a line), under a homeowner’s property (the “private side” of a line), and within a home’s individual plumbing system. 

Older lead pipes are more likely to be corroded, meaning tiny bits of lead can flake off into tap water as it runs through the pipe and enters households. Corrosion happens over time and is exacerbated by a low pH or mineral content of the water pumped through the pipe.

Lead pipes create a substantial public health risk. There is absolutely no safe amount of lead to ingest. Children, including approximately 78,000 children under the age of 18 in Orleans Parish, and pregnant women are most at risk. Exposure to lead—including through tap water—can damage the brain and kidneys, inhibit the development of the nervous system, cause behavioral problems and miscarriages, and more.

The Water Collaborative’s fully trained interns will come to resident homes, take accurate and precise samples, and send the samples directly to a nationally certified laboratory for analysis.

Without proper and accurate data, we can’t confidently say that we are not drinking, cooking, or washing food and dishes with lead-contaminated water.

The Water Collaborative of Greater New Orleans (TWC) is helping residents determine if and how much they are being exposed to lead through tap water. The organization’s lead testing program started in May and will continue to provide free and convenient testing to Orleans Parish residents through mid-September.

Unlike the Sewerage and Water Board’s (S&WB) free lead testing, TWC’s fully trained interns will come to resident homes, take accurate and precise samples, and send the samples directly to a nationally certified laboratory for analysis. Residents need only be home when samples are collected and ensure their water has not been used for six hours before collection. All residents receive their home’s results as soon as they are returned to TWC, which is usually around three weeks, a much shorter turnaround time than S&WB’s typical 60-day window.

Transparency and trust in the data are crucial for our peace of mind. Quickly and accurately knowing how much lead we are each exposed to in our tap water is a game-changer for the community. TWC’s lead testing program helps residents uncover vital information about their home’s tap water quality and make informed decisions to protect themselves and their families from lead exposure.

TWC offers a certified lead filter (or a gift card) as a thank-you to residents who participate in the study. Offering filters that remove lead from water is one way that TWC is finding solutions and helping to combat lead exposure. 

Ultimately, TWC will compile the data it collects into a public report to help community leaders and government agencies better understand and mitigate city-wide lead exposure, bring vital funding to the city for lead service line removal, and tell New Orleans’ story, to fight for clean water.

TWC encourages Orleans Parish residents to sign up for its free lead testing as soon as possible, as the program ends in September. Residents can sign up here or email Taya Fontenette at taya@nolawater.org.

Rebecca Malpass is the Policy & Research Director for The Water Collaborative of Greater New Orleans, a nonprofit dedicated to ensuring everyone can live and thrive with water.