MANKATO — It will take nearly a decade, but Mankato is hoping to eliminate all of the potentially toxic lead pipes delivering water to homes and other properties across the city.
Financed with federal and state funds, the $1 million 2026 Lead Water Service Line Replacement Project in west Mankato intends to be the first of a series of annual efforts that will cover the entire city by the time it wraps up in 2033.
“It is expected that up to 8 phases of Lead Service Line Replacement Projects will be executed over the next eight years, assuming state and federal funding will continue to be provided for these efforts,” according to a feasibility study prepared by the city. “Overall, the 2026 project represents an important first step in Mankato’s long-term effort to protect public health, meet regulatory requirements and modernize critical drinking water infrastructure.”
Lead is particularly dangerous to babies, children under six years and pregnant women, according to the Minnesota Department of Health.
“Coming in contact with lead can cause serious health problems for everyone. There is no safe level of lead,” the department warns. “… Drinking, breathing, eating or touching food, water and other materials that contain lead can damage the brain, kidneys, and nervous system. In children, lead can also slow development or cause learning, behavior, and hearing problems.”
Lead from paint is the primary source of lead poisoning in Minnesota, but the dangers of lead plumbing gained renewed prominence a decade ago when it was learned that nearly 9,000 children in Flint, Michigan had been exposed to the heavy medal for more than a year through their municipal drinking water. A boost in federal grants, administered by the states, came out of Washington, D.C. during the Biden administration. Funded at $3 billion a year for five years via a bipartisan congressional vote, the final year of funding was reduced by $125 million earlier this year when the Republican majority in Congress diverted funding to wildfire prevention.
The Minnesota Legislature contributed $240 million in state funds in 2023.
If federal and/or state elected officials continue to make it a priority, Mankato intends to devote $1 million to a new neighborhood each year to replace all identified lead pipes, as well as galvanized iron and steel pipes which can also contain lead.
Normally, the service lines — the portion of the drinking water delivery system that connects water mains under city streets to the interior plumbing of houses and other buildings — are considered the private property of the homeowner. If problems arise, the replacement cost falls on the owner, City Council member Michael McLaughlin noted.
“If we didn’t pursue these grants, there was the high likelihood that the individual homeowners — since they were responsible for these hookups — were going to be stuck with the cost of making their water less toxic and safe for the long-run,” McLaughlin said before the council approved the project last week.
An attempt to get a better handle on the number and location of remaining lead and galvanized service lines continues in Mankato. Those materials were phased out or banned for use in plumbing systems more than 40 years ago, so they mainly exist in buildings that are no longer owned by the person who built them.
A number of public outreach efforts have attempted to persuade property owners to check their pipes to determine — by using a magnet and doing a visual color check after scratching the pipe with a screwdriver — if they have lead or galvanized service lines rather than a safer material such as copper or brass. Modern construction often relies on plastic PVC piping.
People can add their property to the city’s service line inventory through the city website.
“Of the approximately 10,500 services in the city, approximately 200 have been identified to be lead or galvanized,” according to a memo to the council. “Approximately 3,000 are still unknown.”
At $1 million per year, it is estimated that 40 to 60 service lines can be replaced annually at no cost to the property owner. City officials estimate that total replacement costs will exceed $9 million.