Lead concentrations measured in tap water after a change in corrosion control
Pieper KJ, Tang M, Edwards MA (2017) · Environmental Science & Technology 51(4):2007–2014
Repeated sampling at a single residence reported elevated tap-water lead concentrations following a source-water change made without corrosion-control treatment, and a decline after treatment was restored.
What they studied
A longitudinal sampling investigation at one house in Flint, Michigan, with sequential and repeated tap sampling over roughly two years.
Sampling spanned the period before, during, and after the municipal source-water change that was made without orthophosphate corrosion-control treatment.
Analyses characterized lead concentrations by sample sequence to distinguish plumbing sources.
What they found
The authors reported very high lead concentrations in tap samples during the period without corrosion-control treatment, including samples far above regulatory action levels.
They reported that concentrations declined after the source water was switched back and corrosion-control treatment was reinstated, though not immediately.
Sequential sampling was reported to attribute much of the lead to the service line and premise plumbing rather than the distribution main alone.
What it does not establish
A single residence in one city; the magnitudes reported are specific to that plumbing and that water chemistry.
Findings concern water chemistry and plumbing materials, not occupant health outcomes measured in this study.
Results do not transfer to any other water system without local sampling.
This entry reports the study. It is not a statement about any building Sage Co. designs or constructs.
Source
- Pieper KJ, Tang M, Edwards MA (2017). Flint water crisis caused by interrupted corrosion control: investigating 'ground zero' home · Environmental Science & Technology 51(4):2007–2014 · Read at the source
Last reviewed August 30, 2026.
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