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The Syracuse City Common Council unanimously approved a series of resolutions to combat widespread lead contamination in city drinking water Tuesday. Councilors approved funding for pipe replacement and a deal with a third-party water testing company.

The resolution comes shortly after Families for Lead Freedom Now released a report alleging the city violated multiple regulations while sampling water during recent city-lead tests. In 2023, city officials found 26.8 lead parts per billion in the city water — almost double the level requiring government action, as set by the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

The report also claims results from two tests in 2024 were faulty and improperly collected, resulting in “broken trust,” FLFN advocates said.

In an effort to regain the trust of the public, Robert Brandt, the city’s deputy commissioner of water, told councilors the city was exploring partnerships with private testing companies instead of city collectors, two of whom were put on administrative leave for errors in 2024 samples as a result of improper testing. During a Tuesday morning Public Works (D.P.W. & Transportation) Committee meeting, Brandt proposed 120Water as a potential tester, noting it’s successes in Buffalo.

120Water is a technical services company that helps state agencies, schools and public water utilities manage water sampling programs. The agreement complies with 2021 revisions to the Lead and Copper Rule (LCR), which requires the city of Syracuse to identify and replace all lead service lines in the next decade.

The council also authorized the Lead Service Replacement Project, which will replace the privately owned portion of 2,790 known lead service lines throughout the city and has received $10 million of funding from the U.S. Department of Health. The publicly owned portion of the lead service lines, or the portion that joins with private buildings’ water meters, have been replaced throughout the city since lead pipes were nationally banned in 1986.

Last March, the council approved a 5-year replacement plan, removing 2,200 remaining public service lines, syracuse.com reported.

At-Large Councilor Amir Gethers said the Syracuse Water Department will oversee the newly approved Water Main Replacement Project, which, once completed, will help the SWD achieve “Lead Free Syracuse” by reducing leaks and lowering maintenance costs related to emergency repairs.

The council also authorized an intermunicipal agreement with the Onondaga County Soil and Water Conservation District, which oversees agriculture in the Skaneateles Lake watershed. The Watershed Agricultural Programs works with farmers to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus pollution near large water sources.

The city also extended a contract with the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Onondaga County by one year, providing a Water Quality Education Program and Farm Business Management Services for residents of the lake’s watershed.

Other business:

• The council approved a tax-exemption agreement with the company that owns the Kirkwood Homes properties to build three public housing buildings that would each provide two affordable family-sized units. The city will retain 10% of gross revenue from the complex or $550 per unit monthly — whichever yields a higher total.
• Gethers announced that the city’s Department of Engineering will move forward with the Engineering Design Services Phase for the 1171 West Fayette Municipal Parking Lot Project, which includes building a new parking lot at the corner of West Fayette and Magnolia Street.

Published on February 19, 2025 at 12:04 am