Malden Enhancing Effort To Remove Lead Service Lines

MALDEN, MA — Mayor Gary Christenson and City Councillor Steve Winslow on Wednesday announced a new initiative to speed up the removal of lead pipe service lines, particularly those in areas that serve a higher population of children.

The mayor approved a request to use $2.75 million in American Recovery Act funding to expedite lead service line replacements in 2022, more than triple the $655,000 allocated this year.

"These funds will allow us to mobilize our lead service line program now as we await further Federal Infrastructure Funding that Congresswoman Clark has been working to secure," Christenson said in a statement.

Winslow said Conservation Commission Chair Isaac Slavitt was instrumental in developing the new program.

"Several years ago, I approached Isaac with a proposal to identify the lead lines that serve the most children," Winslow said. "We worked with Malden School Department and Cheverus School to help identify the streets where Malden school kids live. Isaac then took that information and with our GIS and Engineering Departments created an application to identify lead pipes that serve the most children."

About $2 million will go toward removing the most risky lead pipes in the city and repairing those streets once the work is done, while an additional $750,000 will be used to replace lines on other streets being repaved.

The new tool to identify high-impact lead service line street segments can be found here.