Elevated levels of lead have been found in drinking water in Belton, prompting South Carolina’s public health regulators to require officials to take immediate corrective action.
The basics of Belton’s water problem Elevated levels of lead were found in five of 20 water samples taken between June 2018 and September 2018 in Belton, which buys its water from the Belton-Honea Path Water Authority.
Belton officials say the high lead levels are coming from older homes with lead pipes.
Belton does not further treat the water it receives from the Belton-Honea Path Water Authority, City Manager Alan Sims said.
Before elevated levels of lead were discovered last year, Belton’s water had typically been tested for lead every three years, Sims said.
The long-term fix for Belton’s water The Belton-Honea Path Water Authority is planning to use a phosphate-based additive called orthophosphate in its treatment processes to try to reduce the elevated levels of lead.
Elevated levels of lead are not coming from the treatment plant or the treated water itself but from old pipes found in older homes, according to the water authority.
Orthophosphate has never been used in the Belton-Honea Path Water Authority’s treatment processes because there has never been a problem before now, Ellenburg said.
Do not cook with or drink water from the hot water tap.
For more information on reducing lead exposure from water and the health effects of lead, visit EPA’s website at www.epa.gov/lead, call the Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 800-426-4791, or contact your health care provider.