Rochester Mayor Malik Evans' office says the City Water Bureau will soon begin sending notices through the mail to 13,000 city residents whose water service lines contain lead, or an unknown material, or are downstream of a lead pipe. 

The letters will include details on when their street is scheduled to have those service lines replaced and information on how to minimize lead in drinking water.  

“We are making tremendous progress to remove every lead water service line,” Evans said in a statement. “As we do so, we are providing residents with the information they need to ensure their drinking water is as healthy and safe as possible. These notices are meant to inform, rather than alarm our residents, about the presence of lead pipes in a water system that is almost 150 years old. I take pride that Rochester is a national leader in the removal of lead from our municipal drinking water supply.” 

Health officials say no amount of lead is safe, specifically for children.

City officials say more than 8,100 lead service lines have been replaced and that the city is on track to remove nearly 3,000 lead lines per year thanks to American Rescue Plan Act funding and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill. The effort is part of the city’s Get the Lead Out Together program that aims to remove all lead-containing water service lines by 2030. 

The announcement coincides with National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week. 

More information can be found on the city's website.