City Of O'Neill Looking Into Materiel Of Residents' Water Service Line

Recently the Revised Lead & Copper Rule was adopted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and will take effect in Oct. of 2024. What does this mean for O'Neill citizens, and the O'Neill Water Department? The rule states that each community water system must have an inventory of all water service line material types. 

For the City of O'Neill, it is not too difficult to come up with the material types for the city-owned portion. This can be accomplished by referring to our records or looking inside the water meter pit to determine the material of the city-owned service pipe. The customer-owned portion of the service line is a different story. We have no record of customer-owned water service materials. To accomplish this inventory, we need your help.

We are asking you to identify what material your water service line is made of. It might be lead, copper, galvanized steel, or plastic. We are only interested in the type of water service pipe that enters the residence or business. The best way to find this pipe is to locate the water shut-off valve, then follow the pipe back to where it enters your home or business. This is the water pipe material we need you to identify. There is a video tutorial on the City of O'Neill website to help you with this identification. You may also let the city employees at the office know when you stop in or call to pay your bill.

If you've tried to identify your water service line material, but are still unsure, a City representative will visit your home or business to inspect your service line at no cost to you. To request an inspection, call 402-340-6279. 

The City is required to collect a materials inventory from every home and business in O'Neill. We appreciate your assistance in collecting this information.

The Lead & Copper rule change was a result of what happened in Flint Michigan a few years ago. A public health issue was created when the City's water supply switched from an outside water source back to their water treatment facility. Their water treatment facility had not been properly upgraded. Without proper treatment, Flint's water was corrosive and removed the coating inside the water pipes. This caused lead to leach into the water. 

The O'Neill Water Department is proud of its history of serving the citizens of O'Neill with safe drinking water and remains committed to continuing to provide safe drinking water in the future.

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