Executive committee approves mandatory lead pipe replacement program

If the City of Regina changes lead pipes in an area of the city, private homeowners could soon be required to do so as well.

At Wednesday’s executive committee meeting, councillors voted in favour of making a change to the Regina Water Bylaw to make it mandatory that homeowners replace lead water pipes if the city is also replacing them in that area.

The change would include an interest-free co-ordinated agreement between the city and the homeowner. The homeowner will have three payment options to pay for the work: Direct payment to the contractor at the time of the replacement, a five-year equalized payment plan, or a 10-year equalized payment plan if the owner meets the City’s Affordable Access Program criteria.

According to a report brought forward to the committee, “under the new provision, the City can pay the upfront capital cost of the pipe replacement of the private side and allows the property owner to reimburse the City for this expenditure over time, without interest. The unpaid balance will be added to the taxes over multiple years without late payment penalties, as long as the person is making the payments according to the Lead Service Connection Replacement Program (LSCRP) agreement.”

The report says the issue of lead in drinking water doesn’t get fixed if the city is the only one replacing the lead pipes.

If a private home still has lead pipes but the city has already replaced its portion, homeowners will not be required to change them. If a property owner wants to change the pipes and the city has already done so, the owner will have access to the deferred payment plans.

If there is an emergency break and the city needs to replace its portion of lead pipes, property owners will have 60 days to get the work done as well.

The change to the bylaw still needs to be approved at the March 16 city council meeting.