Iredell Water Finds No Lead or Galvanized Pipes in Water System
November 2025
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)'s revised Lead and Copper Rule (LCRR) increased public protection from lead by requiring water systems to inventory their service lines from their water mains to their water meters. The goal? To find lead wherever it may remain in the nation's water systems so it can be removed.
The inventory work will take many utilities several years to complete, and any lines that are not identified by utilities must be marked as "unknown" until they can be reviewed. Wherever lead or galvanized pipes are found, the LCRR - and an updated version of the Rule called the Lead and Copper Rule Improvements (LCRI) - requires utilities to develop a plan to replace them.
Over the last couple of years, Iredell Water has conducted our inventory work by using field investigations, record reviews, and customer outreach. Recently, we completed our work well ahead of the EPA's deadline.
Iredell Water is proud to report that it has identified every water line in its system and has not found any lead or galvanized pipes requiring replacement. The water that enters our mains and is delivered to homes and businesses contains no lead.
This was not a surprise. Since our founding in 1966, Iredell Water has not allowed the use of lead water service lines in our system. We have also met or exceeded EPA lead and copper standards since testing began in 1992.
You can find out about Iredell Water's record of lead protection in our most recent Water Quality Report found here. They detail our success in protecting our customers from lead.
Thank You for Your Help
Iredell Water would like to thank you and the rest of our customers for their help during our inventory work. In some areas of our system, we needed to ask our customers to check their service lines and complete an online survey.
More than 800 customers responded to our survey and shared information about their plumbing and service line materials. The cooperation we received directly contributed to Iredell Water's ability to quickly identify all our service lines and confirm we do not have any lead in our system.
About the Service Line Inventory
As mentioned earlier, the inventory requirements under the LCRR and LCRI are designed to find lead wherever it may exist within every water system in the country.
A "service line" refers to the underground pipe that delivers water from the water main to a home or business. These lines connect to the water main and a water meter before continuing to connect to interior plumbing on the customer’s property. Service lines may be made of various materials such as lead, copper, iron, brass, or plastic.
Iredell Water is responsible for maintaining our water main, the connections between the main and the water meter, and the water meter itself. Our customers are responsible for the portion of the service line running from the water meter to their home or business, along with their internal plumbing.
While Iredell Water has confirmed that there are no lead or galvanized lines in our system, it is still possible for lead to be present inside buildings. The inventory only covers the service line from the water main to the meter; it does not include internal plumbing.
Homes and businesses, especially those built before March 1987, may still have interior plumbing components (pipes, solder, or fixtures) that contain lead. These internal components, which are owned and maintained by the customer, can allow small amounts of lead to dissolve into the water even though the service line itself is not made of lead. If you are unsure whether your plumbing contains lead, we recommend consulting a licensed plumbing professional to evaluate your internal plumbing and fixtures.
Iredell Water will continue to monitor federal and state regulatory changes and communicate with you about any future changes or requirements.
You may also visit our Lead Safe Community page by clicking here where you will see an infographic of our inventory.
