Murphy Signs Lead Service Line Replacement Law

Governor Murphy has signed S4110 (Ruiz) / A5854 (Pintor Marin) into law. The bill was written to allow municipalities to adopt an ordinance to enter properties to perform lead service line replacements. The municipality would not be permitted to enter into a part of the property that is not directly related to performing these replacements.

“This is a good step forward for dealing with our lead problem, but we have a lot more to do. This law is important because it will help us replace lead service lines. Lead in drinking water has become an ongoing issue in New Jersey. There are at least another thirty bills addressing lead that have been languishing in the legislature that we need to pass. We also need a stable funding source to pay for lead abatement and lead pipe replacement,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “This law is important because our water is at risk and we need to be able to replace old lead pipes. Now we can help protect our children from lead in our drinking water.”

Lead is a dangerous substance that can have serious health impacts, especially on children. In urban areas 25% of the water travelling through these pipes leak out. Newark, Paterson and Trenton have open-air finished reservoirs that contribute to the lead problems and they are not doing anything to enclose them.

“Lead is one of the most hazardous substances known to man and it impacts children, especially small children, in our urban areas. It can cause illness and even in small amounts can lead to brain damage and learning disabilities. Our lead standards need to be lowered from 15 ppb to at least 5 ppb. We need to aim for 1ppb like California, because any lead in drinking water is unsafe,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “We thank Governor Murphy for signing this bill into law, but we need to get a lot more done. We need to pass more legislation and establish programs to protect our drinking water from lead. We need to protect our most precious resources – our children.”