Lead and Copper

Eurofins Environment Testing, the leader in environmental testing, is uniquely positioned to support drinking water investigations and monitoring efforts for drinking water infrastructure.  Our scalable operations, with laboratories located across the U.S., are ISO 17025-accredited and certified under the NELAC Institute (TNI) national accreditation program, as well as other federal, state and private organizations to analyze drinking water samples, and to provide the capacity required to meet the needs of sampling events of any size.  Coupled with state-of-the-art instrumentation to meet low level state requirements, and our highly trained team of analysts, Eurofins is the premier laboratory network in the nation for lead and copper drinking water testing for monitoring programs.

On October 10, 2019 U.S. EPA Administrator, Andrew Wheeler signed National Primary Drinking Water Regulations: Proposed Lead and Copper Rule Revisions. To access the proposed rule, click here. Local Utilities will be required to test for lead in child-care facilities and schools. The Utilities will need to create an inventory of lead service lines and make these findings public. U.S. EPA wants to create a 'trigger level' of 10 ppb of lead in water which is more stringent than the current' action level' of 15 ppb for lead.  

Recent national news stories have increased the attention on the country's challenges in addressing lead in drinking water infrastructure. Concern over lead as well as copper in potable water caused grave concerns in many communities.  Lead present in potable water supplies is a result of the corrosion of pipes, such as service lines made of lead, that connect the drinking water main to a house or a building.  Other sources of lead in drinking water can include solder that connects pipes and fixtures made with lead or with brass which contains lead.  Since lead contamination if often a result from corrosion of the plumbing material, EPA established a treatment technique rather than a Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) for lead. A treatment technique is an enforceable procedure or level of technological performance which water systems must follow to ensure control of a contaminant. The treatment technique regulation is referred to as the Lead and Copper Rule.

The responsibility for reducing lead in drinking water and ensuring safe drinking water is shared by EPA, states and local water systems.  EPA is responsible for implementing the Lead and Copper Rule and setting standards.  The states have primary responsibility for enforcing the requirements under the Safe Drinking Water Act [SDWA], as amended, with the exception of Wyoming and the District of Columbia. [EPA administers the drinking water program in these 2 jurisdictions.]  Water systems are generally subjected to the requirements under the SDWA, as amended, and are responsible for the activities and infrastructure needs to meet these requirements. 

The Lead and Copper Rule action levels are at 0.015 mg/L (ppm) for lead and 1.3 mg/L for copper.

How Can Eurofins Help you with Drinking Water Testing for Lead or Copper?

Choose a laboratory partner with the experience, reputation and scalability you demand!

Eurofins offers the following services associated with our drinking water support and all our other testing programs:

• Convenient Locations and Courier Service. We provide either courier or pack-and ship services across the United States. All our couriers are trained in sample handling, sample transport and chain-of-custody (COC) procedures.
• Data deliverables that include fully searchable PDF reports, allows you to quickly find and review data, reducing data management and validation costs.
• Fast and consistent delivery of data, giving you cost-effective, time saving and 24/7 secure access through MyEOL, Eurofins online data management portal for project information.
• Convenience of a nationwide network.  We provide full-service capabilities and expertise from multiple Eurofins laboratories.  
• Reliable availability of sampling equipment, including bottles, coolers, packing supplies and Chains of Custody. 
• Projects on schedule and within budget.  First time quality and reliability stem from our technical expertise and our Project Managers experience. We assist you in defining the best analytical approaches for achieving data quality objectives.

Regulatory Resources

USEPA Guidance for Reducing Lead in Drinking Water in Schools
USEPA Lead and Copper Rule