KALAMAZOO (WKZO-AM) — Flint Mayor Karen Weaver says she could replace all the lead pipes in a year if she had $55 million dollars, and she wants the state and federal governments to pay for it.
But how much would it cost to replace all the lead pipes in the City of Kalamazoo?
Public Services Director Sue Foune said the city has set money aside every year to replace service lines in homes that test high for lead. They’ve been working the plan for some time to replace the lead water mains during street repair projects.
She said they have a contingency plan that, if they were forced by law to get the lead out right now, they would do it over a 14-year period. The total price tab would be about $17 million, and it wouldn’t be paid by the state or federal government.
“That would be the responsibility of water customers,” Foune said.
Portage officials say, because most of their homes are relatively new, there’s little lead in the system.
– John McNeill
