Milwaukee has a lead pipes problem

Like many older cities in the United States, Milwaukee and many surrounding cities have drinking water distribution networks that were built with pipes that contain lead. Lead is a heavy metal and extremely toxic, especially for young children. The city of Milwaukee has provided a list of addresses that are known to have lead service lines. That list has been made searchable with this application in the hopes that more people can get the information they need to keep their families safe from the harmful effects of lead poisoning. Every effort was made to make this list as accurate and comprehensive as possible, but this is only a starting point and neither this application nor the city of Milwaukee has perfect records and so we cannot guaranty perfect accuracy. If you believe you have water supplied with lead pipes you will need to take further steps to investigate that possibility and mitigate its effects.

The City of Milwaukee Health Department recommends occupants of buildings where lead service lines are present should adequately flush water lines after prolonged periods of stagnation to reduce potential lead hazards, but the use of NSF/ANSI Standard 53 certified lead filters is the most thorough means of lead-water safety. At-risk populations of women and children living in buildings where lead service lines are present, including women who are pregnant, may become pregnant (women ages 15-45) or who are breastfeeding, and children up to the age of 6, should drink and cook only with water that has been filtered with an NSF/ANSI Standard 53 certified lead filter.

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