United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of the
Administrator
[Mail Code 1802]
EPA-100-F-00-023
September 2000
(http://www.epa.gov)
WHAT IS
PROJECT XL?
f ('J»
«.. -
SUMMARY OF
THE COLUMBUS
PROJECT
SUPERIOR
ENVIRONMENTAL
PERFORMANCE
Community XL Project:
City of Columbus
HCONOM
INKOVAi" OX
Project XL, which stands for "excellence and Leadership," is a national initiative
created by the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that tests innovative
ways of achieving better and more cost-effective public health and environmental
protection. Project XL for Communities encourages public sector and community
organizations to coma forward with new approaches to demonstrate community-
designed and directed strategies for achieving improved environmental quality
consistent with community economic goals. The information and lessons learned from
Project XL are being used to assist EPA in redesigning its current regulatory and
policy-setting approaches. Project XL encourages testing of cleaner, cheaper, and
smarter ways to attain environmental results superior to those achieved under current
regulations and policies, in conjunction with greater accountability to stakeholders. It
is vital that each project tests new ideas with the potential for wide application and
broad environmental benefits. As of September 2000, over forty pilot experiments are
being implemented and several additional projects are in various stages of
development.
The City of Columbus Division of Water will provide $300,000 per year for fifteen years
to the Columbus Health Department to implement a comprehensive Lead-Safe
Columbus Program (LSCP) designed to identify and reduce lead hazards. This
program will serve as an alternative to the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) Lead and
Copper Rule requirements for testing and replacing Lead Service Line (LSLs). The
Program's interventions are targeted to children who are at most risk for lead
poisoning. Flexibility provided to the City Water Division from US EPA and Ohio EPA
(OEPA) drinking water regulations to suspend LSL testing and replacement for up to
three years, allows funds to be transferred to the LSCP. This XL project, EPA's 43rd,
was signed on September 26, 2000.
The additional funding provided by the City Water Division will significantly enhance
the Health Department's Lead Safe Columbus Program. The LSCP will be
responsible for the following activities:
. Medical case management will be provided for all lead-poisoned children, including:
supplying educational brochures along with free blood lead screening and probe
screens within the community, testing of all children under six residing in a home
where tap water exceeded the State and Federal lead limit, and conducting lead
hazard risk assessments.
»• Public education/outreach activities will be directed towards identified high-risk
areas and include the following components: peer-based parent education;
education for parents of lead-poisoned children; training for local remodelers,
renovators, painters, do-it-yourselfers and property maintenance staff; training of
property owners, realtors, 1st time home buyers, financial institutions, neighborhood
groups, and non-profit housing organizations; and a training module targeted at
management, monitoring and maintenance training for property owners and their
maintenance crews which will be designed to enable property owners to effectively
manage, monitor and maintain their lead-safe housing.
*• $100,000 in Lead Hazard Abatement Grants annually for low-cost abatements to
low- and moderate-income families.
In addition to providing increased resources to the City's LSCP an alternative drinking
water treatment technique will be implemented. Under Federal and State drinking
water regulations, if lead levels in drinking water rise above the limit established by US
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FLEXIBILITY
STAKEHOLDER
INVOLVEMENT
APPROACHES
TO BE TESTED
EPA and OEPA. the City must begin testing LSLs immediately and replacing those
lines that contribute high levels of lead. The alternative to LSI testing and replacement
involves closer coordination between the City, OEPA and US EPA on water treatment
changes and quick access to state and national water treatment experts, and is
expected to provide the same long-term benefit of protecting the citizens of Columbus
as would LSL testing and replacement.
The Columbus Division of Water may need to make changes to the City's drinking
water treatment in the future. The City believes that it is unlikely that these changes
will cause a temporary rise in drinking water lead levels, but does recognize that the
possibility of an increase cannot be ruled out. In the event of an increase in lead levels
above the Federal and State limit regulatory flexibility will be provided under the
SDWA. This flexibility will be conditioned on the City's commitment to provide
resources to the Lead Safe Columbus Program and it's additional commitment to
tackle water treatment issues aggressively.
Stakeholder involvement is integral to XL projects. The goal of Project XL stakeholder
involvement is a collaborative working relationship between sponsors-the
organization that has proposed an alternative approach -and stakeholders - those
people who believe that they or their community will be affected by an XL project. To
this end the project sponsors conducted extensive outreach to local and national
stakeholders and public meetings of interested stakeholders were held in Columbus on
May 16 and June 27, 2000,
Can alternative multi-media approaches to controlling lead, which allow the City to
use some of its drinking water resources to reduce exposure to household lead
paint and dust, be more efficient?
CONTACTS
Project Sponsors:
state:
EPA Region V:
EPA Headquarters:
Gary Garver, Columbus Health Department
Lynn Kelly, Columbus Water Division
Kirk Leifheit, Ohio EPA
Miguel Del Toral
Kristina Heinemann
(614) 6456129
(614) 645-7100
(614) 644.2752
(312) 886-5253
(202) 260-5355
FOR ELECTRONIC
INFORMATION
More information about this XL Project, or the Project XL Program, is available on the
Internet at http://www.epa.gov/proiectxl under "Information on Specific XL Projects," or
via Project XL's Information Line at 202-260-5754.
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