"Fresno Searches For Answers On Discoloration, Lead In Water"

"A vocal and growing number of residents in northeast Fresno are convinced water from the city’s Surface Water Treatment Facility is primarily responsible for corrosion in their pipes, causing discolored water – and in several dozen instances, lead contamination – to flow from their household faucets.

“It really doesn’t matter that the water the city delivers (to the water meter) is clear and has no lead,” said Jeanette Grider, a northeast Fresno homeowner, in a letter to the State Water Resources Control Board. “The point is that the water has not been treated effectively to make it non-corrosive to our galvanized pipes.”

As the clamor continues, the city’s water division is expanding its testing in an effort to pinpoint the factors causing the problem, from water chemistry to corrosion control to the types of pipes and fixtures in affected homes. In turn, water officials hope to come up with a recommended solution – and more likely a set of solutions. They would range from incremental adjustments of pH levels and corrosion-control chemicals in the water to running faucets to flush water from the fixtures to replacing plumbing fixtures or service lines coming off the city’s water meters. The goal: to get the lead out of the water."

Tim Sheehan reports for the Fresno Bee July 9, 2016.