Water Service Line Material Survey

The United States Environmental Project Agency’s (USEPA) Safe Drinking Water Act requires that community water systems – like the CBJ water utility

– perform these surveys to identify where lead service lines exist in water systems. The City and Borough of Juneau (CBJ) has contracted Geosyntec Consultants to run the survey and perform outreach regarding the survey.

A water service line is the pipe that leads from the CBJ water main to your house or business. It is installed during the process of constructing a building and is the responsibility of the building owner or homeowner.

While water main lines are the responsibility of CBJ, water service lines are installed by the builder or construction company that built the dwelling or building. Service line materials have changed over the years and builders are not required to inform the CBJ what type of service line materials they used on a house or building. It’s important that the CBJ gets the information from the property owner to determine if lead service lines are used in the house or building.

The water mains servicing CBJ water utility customers are not made of lead. However, since lead contamination of drinking water can result in health problems, the CBJ encourages property owners to complete the survey to help us gain a better understanding of the types of service line materials in use.

Exposure to lead in drinking water can cause serious health effects in all age groups. Infants and children can have decreases in IQ and attention span. Lead exposure can lead to new learning and behavior problems or exacerbate existing learning and behavior problems. The children of women who are exposed to lead before or during pregnancy can have increased risk of these adverse health effects. Adults can have increased risks of heart disease, high blood pressure, kidney or nervous system problems.

To determine your water service line material, follow the steps below on this page. Then, click here to submit your results online.

If you performed the scratch and magnet test and still aren’t sure what your material is, you can upload photos of the service line via our online survey. Click here to start the survey.

If you have further questions about this survey or need the survey materials in another format or language, contact the CBJ Water Utility at 907-586-0393 or e-mail CBJ.Utility@juneau.gov.

Visit https://dec.alaska.gov/eh/dw/lcrr/.

Lead Service Line Inventory (LSLI) survey responses will be kept confidential while they are being compiled and verified by the CBJ and the State. Once completed, the results of the LSLI will be made available publicly as per the Alaska Public Records Act (PRA; AS 40.25.100 – AS 40.25.295).

• Run your water to flush out lead. If water hasn’t been used for several hours, run water for 30 seconds to 2 minutes until it becomes cold or reaches a steady temperature before using it for drinking or cooking.
• Use cold or bottled water for drinking, cooking, and preparing baby formula.
• Do not boil water to remove lead.
• Identify and replace your plumbing fixtures that contain lead and/or lead solder. To determine your water service line materials, follow the steps below on this page. Then, click here to submit your results online.
• Install a point of use or point of entry treatment device certified to remove lead, such as a reverse osmosis filter.

Yes. To view survey results in-person, please visit the CBJ Water Utility office.