DWS to provide water pipe inventory update at Oct. 18 community meeting

The County of Maui Department of Water Supply (DWS) invites the community to a project update about its ongoing water pipe inventory to comply with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) lead and copper standards.

The community meeting will be held Oct. 18 from 6 to 7 p.m. at Cameron Center Auditorium, 95 Mahalani St., Wailuku. There, DWS will offer details on the new EPA law, status of the inventory content, upcoming work and future updates.

Water tests and historic sampling continue to show the water supply is safe and lead is undetected, according to DWS. The ongoing water pipe inventory is part of the compliance for the EPA lead and copper standards, which was established in the 1990s to monitor the lead and copper levels at the tap inside customers' homes. A new law passed in 2021 now requires a full water pipe inventory for water supply agencies.

Since July, DWS and its Maui-based contractors, HDR Engineering and Brown & Caldwell, have inspected approximately 3,500 water service line points in Central Maui. The onsite inventory of Maui and Molokaʻi customers' water service lines at homes, schools and businesses includes the public and private sides of water service lines, categorizing as Lead, Non-lead, Galvanized Requiring Replacement, or Lead Status Unknown, as required by the EPA.

Complying with lead and copper standards is part of the proactive, rigorous efforts of ongoing DWS stewardship of the water system. The risk of lead - a toxic metal when ingested - inside customers' homes comes from plumbing material made of lead and other sources, such as lead paint, old jewelry or furniture, and imported products. According to the EPA, the health effects of lead can cause serious impacts to children.

Initial inventory reporting is due to the EPA on Oct. 16 and will be posted on the DWS website this fall.

Inventory inspections will be ongoing and DWS will provide periodic updates via website and mail. For more information, visit the DWS webpage at https://mauicounty.gov/544/Lead-Copper or call its Engineering Division at (808) 270-7835.