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Elevated lead levels at 3 facilities in Marquette

MARQUETTE — Elevated lead levels were revealed in four water supply fixtures after lead and copper testing was completed on a total of 49 fixtures at various Marquette facilities in September and October.

The maximum contaminant level for lead is 15 parts per billion and the MCL for copper is 1,300 ppb.

The test results showed that two drinking fountains at Lakeview Arena, a drinking fountain at the Marquette Senior Center and a hand sink in the locker room at the Marquette City Police Department had elevated lead levels.

One of the drinking fountains at Lakeview Arena tested at 30 ppb while the other tested at 18 ppb. The drinking fountain at the senior center noted a lead elevation of 19 ppb, and the sink at the police department tested at 74 ppb.

The two fountains testing over the MCL at Lakeview Arena are located in the south hallway of the Russell Rink. The fountains are relatively low-use fountains as they are not located near the locker rooms, a press release issued by the city of Marquette states. City staff are working on installing filtered drinking fountains with bottle filling stations that the nonprofit Friends of Lakeview Arena donated.

The fountain at the senior center has already been replaced with a filtered drinking fountain with bottle filling station, the release states.

The bathroom sink at the police department is designated as a non-potable water source, but will have the fixture replaced and will be retested to determine if the signage will stay or be removed.

Scott Cambensy, director of public works, said city staff will retest all fixtures once they’re replaced.

“The (Marquette Municipal Service Center) is new construction and all of the fixtures are lead free so it was not tested,” Cambensy said in an email.

Lead and copper testing at city facilities is not mandated by rules and regulations under the Safe Drinking Water Act. However, the city of Marquette decided to perform testings on fixtures in response to recent concerns after elevated levels of lead were detected at Northern Michigan University and Marquette Area Public Schools several months ago. Tests were conducted at Marquette Area Wastewater Treatment Facility, water filtration plant, city hall, including the senior center, Lakeview Arena, both fire departments, Park Cemetery and various city park facilities,.

To this day, no test results have showed exceeding recommended limits of copper in the drinking water.

In order to ensure that tap water is safe to drink, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency prescribes regulations which limit the amount of contaminants in water provided by public water systems. All sources of drinking water contain some naturally occurring contaminants.

“At low levels, these substances are generally not harmful in our drinking water. Removing all contaminants would be extremely expensive, and in most cases, would not provide increased protection of public health. A few naturally occurring minerals may actually improve the taste of drinking water and have nutritional value at low levels,” according to city of Marquette’s 2017 annual drinking water report.

Elevated levels of lead can cause serious health problems, especially for pregnant women and young children. Lead in drinking water is primarily from materials and components associated with service lines and home plumbing.

“The city of Marquette is responsible for providing high quality drinking water, but cannot control the variety of materials used in plumbing components,” the report reads.

Information on lead in drinking water, testing methods, and steps you can take to minimize exposure is available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline or at www.epa.gov/safewater/lead. The test results of Marquette facilities can be viewed at www.marquettemi.gov.

Jaymie Depew can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 206.

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