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Volunteer Homes Needed for Lead Testing Requirements

CITY OF PORTAGE LA PRAIRIE PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT
April 26, 2024, FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Volunteer Homes Needed to Collect Drinking Water Samples for Random Daytime (RDT) Lead Testing Requirements

Portage la Prairie, MB – Annually the City of Portage la Prairie collects RDT lead samples from 40 residences, to meet provincial regulatory requirements for public water systems.

The City of Portage la Prairie has had a lead and metals sampling and mediation program in place for almost 20 years. Starting in 2022, the Office of Drinking Water, working closely with Manitoba Public Health, requires an additional 40 locations to be collected for representative lead level sampling and reporting.  The majority of these samples will need to be obtained from homes built before 1975, and preferably before 1950. Homes with confirmed lead services will be prioritized, however, some of the samples can be obtained from more newly constructed lower risk homes.  The City of Portage la Prairie is looking for volunteers to allow testing in their homes. There is no cost to the homeowner. The results of these tests will be made available to those homeowners directly, and in the City’s Public Water System Annual Report.  When the results are made available, homeowners and/or occupant names, and specific addresses will not be made available to the public.

The current National Drinking Water Guideline requires that lead concentration in potable water be below 0.005 milligrams per litre.  Water entering the distribution system from the City of Portage la Prairie, Water Treatment Plant, meets the lead limit guidelines.  However, there is potential for individual households to have elevated lead levels, especially in older homes. Homes constructed prior to 1975 are more likely to have plumbing and fixtures containing lead and homes constructed prior to 1950 have a great potential for lead connection lines.

To volunteer for your home to be tested, please contact the City of Portage la Prairie Operations Department at 204-239-8346, before May 15th, 2024.

More information can be found on the City of Portage la Prairie’s Lead Water Services Information webpage. Any additional questions regarding the lead monitoring program can be forwarded to the City of Portage la Prairie, Water Treatment Division Manager – Jared Smith email: jared.smith@city-plap.com or at 204-239-8373.

The Province of Manitoba website provides additional details on lead guidelines and accessed online:  www.gov.mb.ca/sd/water/drinking-water/lead/index.html.

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