Minneapolis' drinking water comes from the Mississippi River. We also provide water to seven suburban municipalities, MSP International Airport and Fort Snelling State Park. We invest significant resources to ensure its safety and quality, including testing it hundreds of times a day both in the treatment plants and the distribution system. In addition, we monitor our river source for levels of chloride due to salt in storm water runoff; these levels have been consistently low.
The issues in Flint arose because the water they were pumping from the Flint River was so corrosive that it leached lead from water pipes. In Minneapolis we take specific steps to ensure that our water is lead-free. Since the 1990s, the City has controlled the pH of the drinking water so that it's non-corrosive. We also add a corrosion inhibitor that is designed to form a thin scale inside pipes and fixtures to act as a barrier between the metal and the water we drink. The City also monitors lead concentrations from residential locations. The sampling pool draws from single family structures with lead service lines, lead pipes or copper pipes soldered with lead. Our 2015 sample results were all below the lead action level of 15 parts per billion. For more information about water and lead, click HERE.
The fact that Minneapolis' Water Works does an outstanding job, however, isn't cause for complacency. New technologies and infrastructure, improved processes for mitigating storm water run off, and continuing partnerships with organizations like Mississippi Watershed Management Organization, must continue to be sought and fostered to ensure that our municipal water remains safe for all.
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