- Michigan must meet the new federal lead in drinking water action level by November 2027.
- The federal action level will drop from 15 parts per billion (ppb) to 10 ppb.
- Michigan already lowered its standard to 12 ppb in 2025.
- Residents can reduce exposure now by using certified lead-reducing water filters.
Michigan is working to meet the new federal lead action level for drinking water by November 2027.
The new rule will force all states to comply with a lead action level of 10 ppb.
In January 2025, Michigan lowered its action level for lead in drinking water from 15 ppb to 12. The current federal action level is 15 ppb.
These changes happened after the Flint water crisis.
Aislinn Deely is the Lead and Copper Rule Specialist for the Department of Environment and Energy. She said the purpose of the new federal action level is to fix the problem at the source.
“The whole point is to remove sources of lead because you can’t have lead in your drinking water if there isn’t a source present,” said Deely.
Lead can get into drinking water by leaching out of pipes that contain lead. There's also often lead in older household faucets and fixtures. There's no safe amount of lead in drinking water.
Elin Betanzo is the President of Safe Water Engineering. She said that everyone will be impacted by this new standard to varying degrees.
“Pretty much every household has lead in its household plumbing, so everybody benefits when we get better corrosion control throughout the other water systems even if they don't have lead service lines,” said Betanzo.
Water systems use corrosion control to reduce the amount of lead that can leach out of old pipes and into water.
When a water system has an action level exceedance, water management systems must notify those who are using the water system.
Information is sent to residents to instruct them on ways to reduce lead, said Deely.
But Betanzo said these instructions are not always clear.
“Water systems that aren’t getting a lot of great coverage, a lot of residents don’t get the information. The information will say things like lead was detected at a limited number of homes. They will imply that the water quality issue is not widespread; they’re not using language that would trigger residents to take action to protect themselves,” said Betanzo.
But she said there are things you can do to take extra steps to reduce lead exposure.
“We don’t have to wait for water utilities to come into compliance. There are certified lead reducing filters that are available. There are pitcher styles, faucet mount styles, the ones that go in your refrigerator. All of these are excellent ways of removing lead from your drinking water,” said Betanzo.
