As your water utility provider, Washington Water is committed to providing reliable, high-quality water service to customers in the Minter Creek Rapids water system. We routinely monitor for the presence of drinking water constituents in our system and occasionally in homes. The water we provide to our customers’ meters meets all state and federal water quality standards; however, we are notifying you of elevated test results for lead in two of the five private homes sampled in the Minter Creek Rapids system.

If your home or building participated in our lead and copper sampling program this July, you should soon receive these results for your specific premises. These results are specific to your home/building and may be different from the results taken in other locations. Because homes in this area may have similar characteristics or been built around the same time, we are notifying all customers in the Minter Creek Rapids system of these results.

Please read this information closely to see what you can do to reduce lead in your drinking water, as elevated levels of lead can cause health issues, especially for pregnant women and young children.

What is an Action Level
The lead action level is a measure of the effectiveness of corrosion-control treatment in water systems. The action level is not a standard for establishing a safe level of lead in a home. To check if corrosion control is working, EPA requires water systems to test for lead at the tap in certain homes, including those with lead service lines. Systems compare sample results from homes to EPA’s action level of 0.015 mg/L (15 ppb). If 10 percent of the samples from these homes have water concentrations that are greater than the action level, then the system must perform actions such as public education, treatment adjustments, and lead service line replacements.

What Happened
In July 2026, we worked with customers to collect five water samples and analyzed them for lead and copper. The results of more than 10 percent of our samples exceeded the action level for lead.

Protecting the health of every household in our community is our top priority, and the water we provide to our customers’ meters meets all state and federal water quality standards. Lead from customer-owned service lines, plumbing, and home fixtures can dissolve or break off into water, however, can end up at the faucet. This does not mean that every property that receives drinking water from the Minter Creek Rapids water system has lead in the drinking water. But, it does mean that you should understand how to reduce your exposure to lead through water. Keep in mind that drinking water is not the only potential source of lead exposure, since lead can be found in air, soil, and paint. For more information on all sources of lead, visit https://www.epa.gov/lead.

Steps You Can Take to Reduce Your Exposure to Lead in Your Water
Below are recommended actions that you may take, separately or in combination, if you are concerned about lead in your drinking water. The list also includes where you may find more information and is not intended to be a complete list or to imply that all actions equally reduce lead from drinking water.

• Use your filter properly. Using a filter can reduce lead in drinking water. If you use a filter, it should be certified to remove lead. Read any directions provided with the filter to learn how to properly install, maintain, and use your cartridge and when to replace it. Using the cartridge after it has expired can make it less effective at removing lead. Do not run hot water through the filter. For more information on facts and advice on home water filtration systems, visit EPA’s website at www.epa.gov/ground-water-and-drinking-water/home-drinking-water-filtration-fact-sheet and www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2018-12/documents/consumer_tool_for_identifying_drinking_water_filters_certified_to_reduce_lead.pdf to identify drinking water filters certified to reduce lead.
• Clean your aerator. Regularly remove and clean your faucet’s screen (also known as an aerator). Sediment, debris, and lead particles can collect in your aerator. If lead particles are caught in the aerator, lead can get into your water.
• Use cold water. Do not use hot water from the tap for drinking, cooking, or making baby formula, as lead dissolves more easily into hot water. Boiling water does not remove lead from water.
• Run your water. The more time water has been sitting in your home’s pipes, the more lead it may contain. Before drinking, flush your home’s pipes by running the tap, taking a shower, doing laundry, or doing a load of dishes. The amount of time to run the water will depend on whether your home has a lead service line or not, as well as the length and diameter of the service line and the amount of plumbing in your home.
• Learn what your service line material is. Contact a licensed plumber to determine if the pipe that connects your home to the water main (called a service line) is made from lead, galvanized, or other materials. Visit www.epa.gov/ground-water-and-drinking-water/protect-your-tap-quick-check-lead-0 for EPA’s online step-by-step guide to learn how to find lead pipes in your home.
• Learn about construction in your neighborhood. Contact us at (888) 490-3741 or via email at [email protected] to find out about any construction or maintenance work that could disturb your service line. Construction may cause more lead to be released from a lead service line, if present.
• Have your water tested. Contact us at (888) 490-3741 or via email at [email protected] to have your water tested and to learn more about the lead levels in your drinking water.

If You Would Like to Get Your Children Tested to Determine Lead Levels in Their Blood
A family doctor or pediatrician can perform a blood test for lead and provide information about the health effects of lead. State, city, or county departments of health can also provide information about how you can have your child’s blood tested for lead. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that public health actions be initiated when the level of lead in a child’s blood is 3.5 micrograms per deciliter (µg/dL) or more. For more information and links to CDC’s website, please visit www.epa.gov/ground-water-and-drinking-water/basic-information-about-lead-drinking-water.

What is Being Done
In addition to the information mentioned above that we are providing to all residents in the Minter Creek Rapids system, we will also be following up with additional public education to all our customers by September 30, 2026.

We also plan to take the following steps:

• We are conducting additional lead and/or water quality monitoring of our water system supply.
• We are increasing our lead monitoring to determine the extent of the situation.

For more information, please contact us at (888) 490-3741 or via email at [email protected]. General guidelines on ways to lessen the risk from lead in drinking water are available from EPA’s website at www.epa.gov/ground-water-and-drinking-water/basic-information-about-lead-drinking-water.

Health Effects of Lead
Exposure to excess levels of lead in drinking water can cause serious health effects in all age groups. Infants and children can have decreases in IQ and attention span. Lead exposure can lead to new learning and behavior problems or exacerbate existing learning and behavior problems. The children of women who are exposed to lead before or during pregnancy can have increased risk of these adverse health effects. Adults can have increased risks of heart disease, high blood pressure, kidney, or nervous system problems.

Please share this information with all the other people who drink this water, especially those who may not have received this notice directly (for example, people in apartments, nursing homes, schools, and businesses). You can do this by posting this notice in a public place or distributing copies by hand or mail.