In this episode of Kalamazoo & You, Public Services Director James Baker discusses the city’s ongoing lead service line replacement initiative and why it remains one of Kalamazoo’s most important infrastructure and public health projects. Baker explains that “Replacing lead service lines is one of the most important projects that we can do from a health perspective to improve water quality for citizens in Kalamazoo.” He outlines the historical use of lead pipes, noting that “lead lines are used quite a bit from the late 1800s all the way to 1949,” before the city transitioned to copper lines beginning in 1950. Lead was originally favored because “it had a lot of durability” and could flex around underground utility conflicts in dense urban environments. The interview highlights the city’s significant progress. After celebrating 5,000 replacements several years ago, Kalamazoo has now “surpass[ed] 6,700 lead service lines replaced” and is “about 67% completed with that program here today.” Baker says the city is working toward replacing approximately 10,000 lines total. The conversation also details neighborhood-by-neighborhood progress, including completed work in Eastwood, East Side, Parchment, North Side, and West Douglas, with ongoing work in the Stewart and Edison neighborhoods and future projects planned for the Vine neighborhood. Baker notes that while Michigan’s 2018 Lead and Copper Rule requires communities to replace lead service lines, “Kalamazoo is ahead of most cities.” He adds that the city hopes “to be completed with all lead service lines in the early 2030s.” Emphasizing the health risks, Baker explains that treated water leaving the system contains “no trace of lead,” but exposure occurs when water contacts aging lead service lines entering homes. “There's no safe amount of lead,” he says, reinforcing the city’s goal “to replace all lead service lines so that we can continue to mitigate those health risks to our community.”