Faucets Pose Lead Hazard, Suits Charge

Citing a widespread risk to Californians, Atty. Gen. Dan Lungren and two environmental groups filed suit Tuesday against 14 plumbing manufacturers, charging that kitchen faucets can leach hazardous amounts of lead into drinking water.

In two separate lawsuits, Lungren and the environmentalists cited tests showing that, in some cases, lead contamination from new faucets was more than 150 times higher than California’s strict health standard.

“The risk of exposure to potentially dangerous levels of lead from these faucets is very real,” Lungren said. “While the levels of exposure are highest when the faucets are new, the problem can persist with older faucets as well.”

All sides agree that the hazard is greatest when water has been sitting in the faucet overnight and can be minimized by running the tap for as long as 60 seconds before using the water for drinking or cooking.

The two suits filed under Proposition 65 are part of a continuing campaign by the state and by environmentalists to eradicate lead--a ubiquitous and highly toxic metal that can cause retardation in children as well as stillbirths, birth defects, sperm damage and cancer.

The lawsuits call for a halt to the sale of new faucets containing lead, an information campaign to warn the public of the danger from the fixtures and a fund to test children for exposure to lead.

Representatives of several of the plumbing manufacturers acknowledged that testing showed their products exceeded the Proposition 65 safety standard for lead consumption.

Nevertheless, they said their products do not pose a health risk to the public and contended that companies cannot make faucets that do not leach some lead into water.

“Our position is our products comply fully with every state and federal regulation,” said Doug Martinez, a spokesman for Price Pfister Inc., which is based in Pacoima. “We believe our products are safe.”

Although many Californians have been exposed to the hazard of lead in plumbing fixtures for years without apparent ill effects, scientists have recently discovered that even small amounts of lead can impair the neurological development of young children. Some studies have found that small doses of lead can cause lower intelligence levels in children who otherwise appear normal. Lead also can accumulate in the body from a variety of different sources and pose long-term health problems for adults as well as children.

In recent years, government action has forced the removal of lead from such common products as gasoline, paint, water pipes and solder. Last year, Lungren and the Environmental Defense Fund filed a similar Proposition 65 action seeking to eliminate lead from glazes used in many ceramic dishes, cups and plates.

Environmentalists contend that the health risk from lead in faucets is of particular concern because most Californians depend on their faucets for the water they consume.

A study conducted for the Natural Resources Defense Council by Richard P. Maas, director of the Environmental Quality Institute at the University of North Carolina, found that faucets commonly used in California all leached lead in excess of the Proposition 65 standard.

The fixtures that ranked the lowest, made by Peerless Faucet Co., were still more than five times the California standard. The faucets that ranked the highest, manufactured by Chicago Faucet Co., were measured at nearly 250 times the state threshold.

“These exposures are unnecessary, they are avoidable and they are involuntary,” said Al Meyerhoff, an attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Maas estimated that more than 10% of the homes in California could face problems of lead leaching into the water supply, either from faucets or from older pipes and lead solder. He encouraged those who are concerned about exposure to lead to get their water tested. Various companies will do the testing for $20 to $40 per test.

In the seventh year of drought, environmentalists saw the irony in advising the public to flush their faucets for 60 seconds before using their water for drinking or cooking. But they suggested the water could be saved and used for watering plants or cleaning.

Industry representatives suggested that running the water for two seconds would be sufficient.

Lungren recommended flushing the faucet for 60 seconds any time it has not been used for six hours or more. He also advised cooking only with cold water, since lead leaches more quickly into hot water.

“I’m sure that many people are getting a little anxious because every time they turn around something else in their life is declared a health threat,” the attorney general said. “While I think people should take this seriously, I don’t think it’s time to panic and rip out your faucet.”

Lungren and environmentalists said they hope the lawsuits will force plumbing manufacturers to get the lead out of their products. For the past six years, the industry has been negotiating with the federal Environmental Protection Agency for a lead standard for faucets but has not yet reached agreement.

“Our message to this industry today is very simple: It’s time to get the lead out,” said Jim Wheaton, president of the Environmental Law Foundation. “We mean that it’s time to stop putting lead in the drinking water. We also mean it’s time to stop dragging their feet as they have been doing with the EPA.”

Under Proposition 65, the California standard is based on the amount of lead judged safe for human consumption: 0.5 micrograms per day or less. This is equivalent to drinking one liter of water containing 0.5 parts of lead per billion.

This is far more stringent than the EPA standard, which allows a lead content in water of as much as 15 parts per billion. And industry representatives contend that if the stricter standard applies, no one in California would be able to buy a faucet.

“There is not a faucet company in the United States that currently meets the (California) standard,” said Michelle Hudec, a spokeswoman for Chicago Faucet Co. “If they cut everybody off, there would be no faucets coming into California.”

Dick Church, a spokesman for the Plumbing Manufacturers Institute, said the industry has so far not been able to find an alternative for lead, which is used as an alloy in brass fixtures and is allowed under federal law to make up 8% of a faucet. Even plastic faucets have been shown to leach lead in amounts above the Proposition 65 standard, he said.

Although Proposition 65 was approved by voters in 1986, this is the first case brought under a provision banning the discharge of toxic chemicals into drinking water. The suits also allege that the manufacturers did not properly notify the public of the hazard as the law requires.

Under the measure, the potential fines are astronomical, and in theory could amount to $2,500 a day for each case of exposure over the past four years.

Lead in New Faucets

Here is the average amount of lead leached from a faucet in its first six days of use. Measurements are based on the first liter of water drawn each day. The lead consumption standard under California’s Proposition 65 is 0.5 micrograms per day per person. COMPANY: MICROGRAMS OF LEAD Chicago: 124.80 Price-Pfister: 76.85 B&K;: 43.25 Sterling: 36.75 Nutone: 33.80 True Value: 31.19 Kohler: 30.22 Woodmark: 23.70 Ace: 18.86 Elkay: 17.80 Moen: 16.04 Eljer: 14.35 Kitchen-Aid: 13.90 Univ. Rundle: 13.87 Sears: 9.52 Manville: 7.87 Delta: 4.30 American Standard: 3.36 Peerless: 2.76 Source: Study for the Natural Resources Defense Council by Dr. Richard P. Maas, University of North Carolina.