Newark Appears to Have Averted a Flint-Scale Water Crisis

(Bloomberg) -- Almost all of the filters supplied by Newark, New Jersey, to combat tainted water showed lead lower than the federal standard in preliminary tests, Governor Phil Murphy said.

The results indicate that the city, New Jersey’s most populous, likely has avoided a crisis on the scale of that in Flint, Michigan, whose contaminated supply led to a state of emergency. Newark will continue to supply free bottled water, officials said at a City Hall news conference.

The city also will continue to supply free Pur brand filters, with the recommendation that residents let the water run for at least five minutes if the taps have been closed for several hours.

“These results are a welcome jolt of positive news,” Murphy said.

Laboratory results released in August found lead higher than the federal standard of 15,000 parts per billion in two of three water samples from residential filter-fitted taps. Residents of about 15,000 homes, all within the Pequannock watershed supply area, were told to consume only bottled water until further notice.

Despite the encouraging tests, city officials urged residents to continue using bottled water. “We acted in an overabundance of caution,” Mayor Ras Baraka said. “We’re not going to put brakes on real fast on giving out water.”

The city plans to replace all its lead supply lines at a cost of $120 million.

The latest testing, coordinated by city vendors and state and federal environmental regulators, involved at least 1,700 samples from more than 300 filters, according to Shawn LaTourette, chief of staff for the New Jersey environmental protection department.

Lead measured less than 10,000 parts per billion in 97% of filters tested -- well below the federal standard. Effectiveness was 99% when taps were run for several minutes prior to sampling, a recommended morning routine if lines haven’t been opened overnight.

Of the 3% of filters that failed, officials said the cause was unknown, but the devices could have been defective or used improperly. Newark will train volunteers to show residents how to install and use the units.

The Natural Resources Defense Council, which sued Newark over lead in drinking water in 2018, said it’s “somewhat encouraged” by the results. It called for continued distribution of bottled water until all filter issues are resolved.

The group, which in August unsuccessfully sought a court order to expand the city’s bottled-water handouts, said it remains concerned about the effectiveness of the filters. “We say ‘Trust, but verify,’ ” Erik D. Olson, the group’s senior strategic director for health and food, said in an emailed statement.

Newark, with more than 280,000 residents, has taken steps to limit lead exposure since January 2017, when it disclosed the presence of the organ-damaging element. Any amount of lead ingestion is considered unhealthful.

--With assistance from John Herzfeld.

To contact the reporter on this story: Elise Young in Trenton at eyoung30@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Flynn McRoberts at fmcroberts1@bloomberg.net, Stacie Sherman

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