Amboy, Polo getting $1.4 million in federal money to replace lead water lines

Federal money to replace lead water service lines in Amboy and Polo is on its way.

Amboy is in line to get $1 million, while Polo is getting $400,000, money included in fiscal 2024 appropriations bills, U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth confirmed Tuesday in a news release.

A significant part of Amboy still has lead water lines.

“It’s basically the whole entire older part of the town,” Mayor John Schamberger said.

In May, he estimated that that would be 100 to 300 lines that would need to be replaced.

He’s thrilled with the money.

“We’re pretty confident it will cover everything we need, and it won’t be a burden on the taxpayers,” Schamberger said.

According to the nonprofit National Resources Defense Council, most household plumbing, including faucet and pipes, contains some amount of lead, “but lead service lines present the largest source and risk of lead in drinking water.”

No amount of lead is safe to ingest, health experts say.

Service lines are the underground water pipes that connect homes and other buildings to a water main or well.

In 2021, state legislators approved the Lead Service Line Replacement and Notification Act, requiring communities to create an inventory of lead and galvanized steel lines and establish a plan to replace them.

It requires replacing full lines, including sections on private property, in addition to the public lines.

An inventory must be done by April 15, 2024, and property owners with service lines that need to be replaced must be notified within 15 days of the city identifying them.

A final plan is required by 2027, and cities have 34 years to complete the replacements.