The issue of lead service lines was a prominent topic of discussion at Monday night’s City Council meeting. The Environmental Protection Agency has mandated that all water lines in every municipality in the State (and across the country) be inventoried to determine whether or not the pipes are made of lead. This initiative is to encourage the removal of lead pipes which pose a clear public health hazard. This mandate was rolled out quickly by the Department of Health which left municipalities scrambling to do the inventory within the time frame that the mandate called for. Thus, some residents have been confused and concerned about what this all means and what they need to do. Joe Rhein from Bolton & Menk was on hand to help explain that which is confusing to Council members and residents.
City officials have been seeking information from Reserve Mining that will help them know about the original water service lines that were installed back in the mid 50s. At that time, lead and galvanized pipes were commonly used in municipal water systems. Unfortunately, officials have not been able to find that information and have, in compliance with the EPA mandate, had to classify most of the water lines in the city as “unknown”. Property owners who have water lines classified as “unknown” will receive annual notices from the Department of Health until their service lines can be classified as “known”. Homeowners do not need to have their water tested as the City tests Silver Bay water for lead on a regular basis. To help city officials determine what type of service line they have, homeowners should take a picture of where the service line enters their house and send that picture to City Hall. If homeowners are unsure about where their service line is located, they are encouraged to contact City Hall and someone from the Water Department will come to the home to obtain the needed photograph. In 1986, lead pipes were banned from home construction so residents that have homes built after ‘86 will likely have copper service lines and won’t need to do anything.
Residents can visit the City’s webpage for clarification on how their service line is classified. Simply scroll down to the Latest News section and click on the Notification of Accessibility of the Service Line Materials Inventory link. You will see a map of Minnesota. Click on the Silver Bay location and type your street address into the inquiry space at the upper left corner of the page.
In other business, the Council voted in favor of a resolution to accept grant funding from the Minnesota Department of Education for Library construction. The Council will also be considering guidelines to put some parameters around public comments at city meetings. Having such guidelines and making them known to the public is common practice in most municipalities and will hopefully curtail the inappropriate demands and accusations that have occasionally been on display at some Council meetings. Residents are encouraged to attend the monthly Meet With The Mayor meetings if they have questions about things that are going on around the city.
Finally, the Council voted to renew Beth Smuk’s place on the EDA Board and Dustin Goutermont will be serving on the Liquor Commission.
The next Silver Bay City Council meeting is scheduled for December 2nd at 7:00 PM.
