Residents' water still under lead advisory

Grand Lake Estates residents likley will be under an advisory for lead in their drinking water for at least a few more months.

Lead was detected in the water supply during a routine test last summer. Two of five tested homes had levels higher than the accepted 15 parts per billion threshold, Ohio Environmental Protection Agency representative Heidi Griesmer said. State regulations require a lead advisory if more than 10 percent of samples exceed 15 ppb of lead.

The samples were taken Sept. 15 from kitchen sinks, according to an OEPA notice. However Griesmer could not release the exact test sites. The two homes had been unoccupied for an extended period, she said. One was a seasonal home and the other's residents had not been home for some time.

"We felt like we needed to do something to take care of the problem," manager Scott Osborne said when he first heard about the tests. He and employees have been working to clear the water system of lead and cooperating with the EPA, he said.

The community of more than 50 homes is located east of Montezuma on state Route 219 and will be tested by the EPA again within 12 months. Park managers have 18 months to create a plan to prevent future lead exposure, Griesmer said.

Osborne said new tests were taken Feb. 15 and 16. The results are pending.

"All we can do is keep testing," he said.

Lead levels have been reduced, and the new tests should show that, he added.

"We understand that it takes time to reduce the leaching of lead in a water system," Griesmer said.

Residents can still cook or drink with the water, though they should let the water run for a few minutes before using it, Griesmer said. "Letting the water run for a few minutes should clear out a majority of any lead build-up in a faucet, and pregnant women and children should drink bottled water instead."

"Drinking water with too much lead can cause to brain damage, most commonly in younger people," she said.

In early February OEPA workers visited the community to let people know again about the lead issue, Griesmer said. Results for any OEPA test must be posted in the area of the test within 30 days, regardless of results. Community officials have 60 days to notify all residents of negative results.

An OEPA letter notifying residence of the situation is posted at a group of mailboxes in the park's southeast corner.

Having stagnant water in pipes for a long time can speed up oxidation of pipes and can be a source for lead in water supplies, Michelle Kimmel, Mercer County Celina City Health Department director of environmental health, said. Lead can also come from the corrosion of lead-based solder on pipes.

The department is not involved in the situation since Grand Lake Estates has a private water source, health commissioner Amy Poor said.

Consuming large amounts of lead of can cause brain and kidney damage and interfere with the production of red blood cells that carry oxygen in the body, according to the OEPA notice.

Homeowners can buy their own water-quality test kits but Griesmer suggests they contact water departments to administer any testing to keep the results as accurate as state-administered ones.

The Grand Lake Estates test was routine and completed in the summer because warm weather is more likely to produce lead in water supplies, Griesmer said.

Rockford, another Mercer County community that had dealt with lead in residential water supply, has been deemed clear of detectable levels of the heavy metal. Final OEPA test showed the system was clear this week, village administrator Jeff Long said.

In September 2014, the village's water was found to be a few micrograms over the limit for copper and lead. A polyphosphate treatment was then added to the plant's process to reduce the metals. In December 2015, tests showed the readings to be beneath detectable levels.

The village will be placed on a regular testing schedule by OEPA, Long said.