Milwaukee Public Works committee discusses lead pipes, water concerns

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- The Milwaukee Public Works committee met Wednesday to discuss the city's lead pipes and concerns over water safety.

The goal of the discussion was to talk about lead service lines and replacements. Representatives from the Department of Public Works and Milwaukee Water Works explained there are public lead service lines the city replaces and private lines that homeowners are responsible for. Both public and private line replacements are between $6,000-$7,000. 

In the future, the city may help homeowners pay for the private pipe replacements using money from the water rates that residents pay.

"A lot of these pipes are private, a lot of the pipes in homes with lead poisoning are not the city of Milwaukee's pipes. They're the property of some person or some individual property owner," 4th District Alderman Robert Bauman said.  "What's their responsibility in all of this? Is it the city's job to pay their bills? Is it the city's job to fix their roof or their porch or their pipe? Maybe, depending on the level of the health crisis."

For more information on lead pipes and to find out if your home is impacted, head to the city of Milwaukee's website.