SPOKE WITH PEOPLE WHO SATHEY WANT ANSWERS.
>> WHEN OCEAN AFFAIRS SYRACUSE
HOME WAS BUILT BACK IN 1925,
LEAD WAS IN THE PAINT AND
PIPING.
>> THIS IS OUR WATER METER.
>> IN 2017, OCEANA’S ELDEST
GRANDDAUGHTER TESTED POSITIVE
FOR LEAD POISONING, WHICH SHE
SAYS THE COUNTY TRACED TO THE
PAINT IN HER HOME AND SEALED IN
THE EXISTING LEAD, SEEMINGLY
SOLVING THE PROBLEM.
>> THIS IS HER HOME. SHE SHOULD
BE SAFE HERE.
>> BUT THEN, TWO YEARS LATER,
HER SECOND GRANDDAUGHTER, ELLA,
WAS BORN.
>> HER LEAD TEST RESULTS CAME
BACK AT 3.5. BEING A LEAD
ADVOCATE, WE KNEW THAT WE SHOULD
BE CONCERNED, OCEANA SAYS.
>> IT WASN’T UNTIL THIS YEAR
THAT SHE DISCOVERED TAP WATER
ENTERS HER HOME. THROUGH A
CENTURY OLD LEAD SERVICE LINE,
AND WHILE IT’S NOT CONFIRMED IF
OR TO WHAT EXTENT THAT MAY HAVE
BEEN A FACTOR IN ELLA’S LEAD
LEVEL, SHE’S NOW FILTERING ALL
DRINKING WATER. SO WHEN YOU
REALIZED YOU HAD A LEAD SERVICE
LINE, WHAT WENT THROUGH YOUR
HEAD THAT I HAD LET MY GRANDBABY
DOWN.
>> WE THOUGHT THAT THIS HOUSE
WAS SAFE FOR OUR GRANDCHILDREN.
>> THERE ARE 14,000 HOMES WITH
OLD LEAD PIPES IN SYRACUSE,
ACCORDING TO THE CITY PIPING
ALSO SEEN ACROSS THE COUNTRY
FROM FLINT, MICHIGAN, TO NEWARK,
NEW JERSEY. PRESIDENT BIDEN HAS
CALLED FOR ALL LEAD PIPING IN
THE U.S. TO BE REPLACED EACH
YEAR, THE CITY OF SYRACUSE TESTS
THE WATER FROM A RANDOM SAMPLE
OF THOSE HOMES FOR LEAD. THIS
YEAR, 27 OUT OF 104 PROPERTIES
TESTED ABOVE EPA ACCEPTED LEVELS
SOME WAY ABOVE EPA ACCEPTED
LEVELS, ACCORDING TO CITY
RECORDS OBTAINED BY THE NATURAL
RESOURCES DEFENSE COUNCIL OR
NRDC, AND REVIEWED BY NBC NEWS.
THE CITY NOW CLAIMS TESTS WERE
IMPROPERLY ADMINISTERED AND SAID
THEY SUSPENDED TWO WATER
DEPARTMENT EMPLOYEES PENDING AN
INVESTIGATION, CLAIMING RECENT
SAMPLING SHOWS NUMBERS BELOW THE
EPA ACTION LEVEL. THE CITY HAS
YET TO RELEASE THOSE FULL
RESULTS.
>> SYRACUSE HAS A SIGNIFICANT
LEAD PROBLEM.
>> ERIC OLSON FROM THE NRDC IS
SOUNDING THE ALARM.
>> FOR SEVERAL YEARS, SYRACUSE
HAS BEEN SKATING RIGHT AT THE
EPA LEVEL FOR LEAD. WE DON’T
BELIEVE THAT THE LEVEL COULD
HAVE POSSIBLY DROPPED FROM 70
DOWN TO LESS THAN TEN IN THE
SPAN OF A COUPLE OF MONTHS. IT’S
JUST NOT REALLY POSSIBLE. THE
WATER IN THE CITY OF SYRACUSE IS
SAFE.
>> GREG LOWE IS THE CITY’S CHIEF
POLICY OFFICER. HE SAYS INITIAL
SAMPLES WERE TAKEN FROM OUTSIDE
HOSES, INFLATING LEAD LEVELS.
>> IT CAN MAKE A VERY
SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN THE
LEVELS OF MATERIALS THAT CAN BE
FOUND IN A WATER SAMPLE, BECAUSE
THAT WATER CAN BE STAGNANT,
SITTING THERE FOR A LONG PERIOD
OF TIME BEFORE IT’S EVER USED.
>> THE NRDC IS CALLING FOR
SYRACUSE TO DECLARE A STATE OF
EMERGENCY AND TO HAND OUT WATER
FILTERS TO ALL HOMES WITH LEAD
SERVICE LINES. SYRACUSE. THE
CITY IS SAYING THAT THAT INITIAL
TESTING WAS FAULTY. WHAT IS YOUR
RESPONSE TO THAT?
>> WELL, WE SAY SHOW US THE
DATA. WE’VE SEEN THIS IN CITY
AFTER CITY. WE SAW IT IN FLINT.
WE SAW IT IN OTHER PLACES WHERE
THE CITY WAS RELUCTANT TO
DISCLOSE THEIR DATA, WAS TESTING
IN A WAY THAT WAS NOT ACCURATE.
>> LOWE SAYS HE’S LISTENING TO
CITIZENS CONCERNS. LET’S SEE IT
HAPPEN, HE SAYS. THE DATA FROM
THE SECOND ROUND OF TESTING WILL
BE RELEASED IN SEVEN WEEKS,
AFTER THE RESULTS HAVE BEEN
VALIDATED BY REGULATORY PARTNERS
IN THE MEANTIME, THE CITY SAYS
IT’S MAKING WATER FILTERS
AVAILABLE TO HOMES WITH CHILDREN
UNDER SIX AND PREGNANT WOMEN.
WHY NOT GIVE THE FILTERS TO
EVERYONE?
>> BECAUSE THAT ISN’T WHAT THE
DATA SHOWS IS NECESSARY.
>> NBC NEWS KNOCKED ON DOORS OF
HOMES THAT INITIALLY TESTED FOR
HIGH LEVELS OF LEAD. OKAY, SO
YOU’RE DRINKING THIS WATER FROM
THE TAP. YES. AND YOU HAVE BEEN
FOR TWO YEARS. YES. INCLUDING
THE RESIDENTS OF COLLEGE STUDENT
HAYDEN BRAGG. THIS IS ONE OF THE
HOUSES THAT WAS FOUND TO HAVE
INORDINATELY HIGH LEAD LEVELS.
WAS IT? DO YOU NOT KNOW THAT?
NO.
>> I DON’T KNOW.
>> I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT’S
HAPPENING RIGHT THERE.
>> WHEN BRAGG’S ROOMMATE TELLS
HIM THEY RECEIVED A LETTER OVER
THE SUMMER ALERTING THEM TO THE
HIGH LEAD LEVEL, THEY SAID IT
WAS HIGH.
>> YEAH, IT WAS LIKE 57, BUT
THEY HAVEN’T BEEN TOLD IF THAT
WAS THE RESULT OF FAULTY
TESTING.
>> AND THEY’RE WAITING ON A
SECOND SAMPLE.
>> AND, YOU KNOW, LIKE WHEN I
WAS IN HIGH SCHOOL, THE WHOLE,
LIKE FLINT, MICHIGAN THING, I
NEVER REALLY THOUGHT IT WAS
GOING TO BE ABOUT ME.
>> IS IT FEELING LIKE IT’S ABOUT
YOU NOW?
>> YEAH. I MEAN OBVIOUSLY, YEAH,
IT IS ABOUT ME. IT’S ABOUT LIKE
THIS WHOLE COMMUNITY.
>> ERIN IS JOINING US NOW BACK
FROM JUST A FEW DAYS AGO, BACK
FROM SYRACUSE. RIGHT. NOT TOO
LONG AGO. THAT’S RIGHT. GIVE ME
A SENSE OF WHAT IT WAS LIKE ON
THE GROUND THERE. I MEAN, YOU
SAW IT IN THAT PIECE, BUT WHAT
WAS YOUR WHAT SURPRISED YOU THE
MOST FROM BEING UP THERE?
>> YOU KNOW, IT WAS VERY CLEAR
THAT CITIZENS ARE
EXTRAORDINARILY CONCERNED ABOUT
THE SITUATION. CITIZENS LIKE
OCEANA FAIR, WHO WE JUST SAW
THERE, WHO HAS A LEAD SERVICE
PIPE IN HER HOME. THE QUESTION
IS, NOW, YOU KNOW, WHEN IS THE
CITY GOING TO REMOVE THOSE LEAD
PIPES? WHAT IS THE TIMELINE? EPA
GUIDELINES REQUIRE ALL LEAD
PIPES TO BE REMOVED WITHIN THE
DECADE. THE CITY OF SYRACUSE
SAYS THAT IT’S EXCEEDING THOSE
GUIDELINES THAT THOSE LEAD PIPES
WILL BE OUT OF THERE. IT’S ON
TRACK, THEY SAY, FOR FIVE YEARS
THEY’RE GOING TO REMOVE 3000 OF
THE SERVICE LINES WITHIN THE
NEXT YEAR ALONE. ACTIVISTS,
RESIDENTS SUCH AS OCEANA FAIR
SAY THAT IS NOT FAST ENOUGH.
THEY WANT THIS DONE SOONER
RATHER THAN LATER. AND THEY’RE
CALLING ON THE CITY TO BE
TRANSPARENT. FOR EXAMPLE, OCEANA
SAYS SHE DOESN’T KNOW WHEN THE
CITY IS GOING TO REMOVE THAT
LEAD SERVICE LINE, AND SHE SAID
IT WOULD COST HER ANYWHERE FROM
7000 TO $10,000 TO REMOVE THAT
LINE HERSELF, MONEY THAT SHE.
AND SO MANY FOLKS OUT THERE IN
SYRACUSE DON’T HAVE, JUST DON’T
HAVE SITTING AROUND.
>> DID YOU GET THE SENSE, BEYOND
WHAT WE SAW IN THE PIECE, THAT
THERE ARE FOLKS WHO ARE
FRUSTRATED THAT THIS ISN’T
GETTING MORE ATTENTION ON A
BIGGER LEVEL?
>> I THINK FOR THEM, THEIR
PRIORITY AT THIS POINT IS JUST
GETTING THESE ANSWERS FROM THE
CITY. IT’S THEIR HOMES, THEIR
LIVES.
>> ERIN, WE’RE SO GLAD THAT YOU