Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU) has finished an online inventory of all water service lines in its territory, listing the materials used to pipe drinking water into each residence and building.  

The inventory is a new requirement by the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) aimed at reducing lead pipes and exposure to lead, which can cause health problems. The EPA has previously reported that Florida has the most lead pipes in the country.  

GRU reports that the utility has always followed the Lead and Copper Rule and will abide by the new guidelines.  

Jennifer McElroy, supervising engineer and utility designer for GRU, said in a press release that the EPA’s new guidelines are important to ensure safety.    

“While GRU does not expect to find lead service lines in our area, we will not know with 100 percent certainty until the inventory is complete,” McElroy said. “If you have information about your private service line, please reach out to us. Meanwhile, we will continue to update our website.”    

GRU finished the online inventory in August, before the Oct. 16 deadline. Now the utility will move into phase 2: verifying all pipes currently listed as unknown.  

While GRU has records of all pipes and main water lines it has installed, home builders and developers are responsible for installing the pipes that go from GRU’s infrastructure and into the building. The utility doesn’t have the permit work for all that work, so it has listed many residences as unknown.  

Residences will receive a notification if the water line into their home is listed as “unknown” to explain the dangers of lead exposure. 

GRU said it will work with a consultant to verify the unknown lines through visual inspections and desktop modeling. GRU reports that the deadline for verifying these lines is 10 years past the effective day, which has not yet been set. 

Customers can find the full inventory and search for their address at the GRU website. The utility also posts annual drinking water information from tests. You can find a full list of FAQs and the 2023 report here.