Did Toronto Make Its Lead Contamination Problem Worse?
The history of plumbing and lead are inextricably tied together. Consider that the very word “plumbing” is based on the Latin word for “lead”, which is plumbum. And where did they speak Latin? In ancient Rome, where they used lead pipes to carry water.
Fast forward two thousand years to the new world, where Toronto was installing lead water supply pipes up until about 1955. This was done despite the fact that health issues with lead had been known for centuries. Even in Roman times, it was understood that water delivered in clay pipes was healthier than water supplied by lead pipes.
Lead is a toxic metal that can poison people at very low dosages. Simply put, lead replaces other essential elements in the body. For example, lead replaces calcium in the brain in the reactions that transmit electrical impulses. Once the calcium is replaced, those electrical impulses no longer work, and that part of the brain does not function. As a result, lead is considered a neurotoxin. Lead has other poisonous effects on the body too, including the heart, bones, intestines and the reproductive systems. Lead is particularly toxic to children, and is known for causing permanent learning and behavioral disorders.
In 2008, the City of Toronto started a Lead Water Service Connection Replacement Program, in response to concerns raised by the Ministry of the Environment regarding the levels of lead in Toronto’s drinking water. At that time, approximately 65,000 homes in Toronto were serviced by lead pipes. As part of that program, the City replaced the public portion of the lead water pipe serving a home and encouraged the homeowners to replace their portion of the pipe at the same time. Given the cost to the homeowner of roughly $1,500 op $3,000 to replace the private portion, many homeowners elected not to proceed, and only the public portion was replaced with copper. The City considered the implementation of a financing program to assist people with the cost, however this was not implemented. The target was to have all lead services replaced within nine years.
In early 2010, the Center for Disease Control released a report regarding the replacement of lead water service lines. Research showed that when lead service lines were only partially replaced, children were more likely to have elevated lead levels in their blood compared with children living in homes where the lead lines were undisturbed. One theory is that the replacement of a portion of the pipe (the public side), disturbs the remainder of the pipe (the private side), which then releases even more lead into the water. The CDC notified public works officials across North America about this potential problem and recommended that residents be warned to take precautions when only a portion of a lead water service line is replaced. Those precautions include flushing water lines, cleaning aerators and installing water filters capable of reducing lead.
In 2011, the City of Toronto altered its Lead Water Service Connection Program. To avoid the problems caused by partial replacements, homeowners can no longer request that the public side of the lead water service be replaced unless the homeowner agrees to replace the private portion at the same time as (or before) the public portion is replaced, unless it is an emergency. The City also reduced the number of lead service lines that would be replaced annually, to the point that it would now take 15 years to complete the city-wide upgrade.
Following the completion of this process this particular drug proceeds for the next online viagra australia step. So the order viagra cheap prescription is huge in the online drug store without any prescription. Make your life more enjoyable with exciting nights with the regular intake of viagra tablets 20mg these ayurvedic capsules. This is because of the fact that marriage is among the greatest relations of the planet. order free viagra
In addition to these changes, the City of Toronto also implemented a faucet filter program, providing water filters and rebates to those most affected by elevated lead levels in water and encouraged residents to flush their water pipes before drinking water if the water has not been run for a few hours (such as overnight, or during the work day).
This year, the City started a Corrosion Control plan to reduce levels of lead in the water. At Toronto’s four water treatment plants, phosphoric acid is mixed into the city’s drinking water before it is delivered to residents. This creates a phosphate build-up inside water distribution pipes, which forms a barrier that should reduce the amount of lead that leaches into water. It is expected that this coating will take two years to fully form.
On the subject of chemical additions to the water supply, Toronto’s water treatment also includes chloramine and hydrofluorosilicic acid. Both of these chemicals are known to increase the amount of lead that leaches into the water. In fact, these chemicals can increase lead levels even if the house is not served by lead pipes. They are capable of leaching lead from soldered joints and from brass fittings.
Between 2008 and 2014, approximately 15,000 water samples from Toronto homes have been tested for lead. Thirteen percent of those tests showed results that exceeded the current “safe”level. This is somewhat misleading, however, since many experts agree that there is no safe limit for lead ingestion. The old adage that the poison is in the dosage simply does not apply to lead. The level of contamination that is considered “acceptable” is merely a threshold for action to be taken – there is no safe dosage of lead – no amount that is harmless.
Residents of Toronto should be warned that they may be exposed unsafe levels of lead in their drinking water. While elimination of lead piping should reduce the problem, partial replacements and chemical treatments contribute to increased lead contamination. Water tests can be performed to determine the extent of lead contamination in a home, and are especially recommended in older areas of the city. Water filters are a temporary means of reducing lead, although homeowners concerned about the cocktail of chemicals mixed into our water may want to consider alternate sources of water.
Leave a Reply
Your email is safe with us.