Many state drinking water administrators are considering developing inventories of the materials used in service lines that are part of the distribution systems of community water systems (CWSs) they regulate. Some states have already conducted voluntary or mandatory surveys of CWSs whether on their own or in response to state legislation. Others are preparing to use the information in the next round of Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessments (DWINSA) that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is developing pursuant to Section 2015 of the America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018. The 2020 DWINSA will include an estimate of the number of public and private lead service lines as well as an estimate of the costs to replace all lead service lines, which will be a significant undertaking for water systems to develop and states to collect information on.
To assist states that are considering initiating a lead service line (LSL) inventory, the Association of State Drinking Water Administrators (ASDWA) has developed the following guidance based on the experience of the states that have already conducted or are preparing to develop a comprehensive inventory of service line materials.