National and state environmental and civil liberty groups joined CNY doctors and activists in demanding an emergency response in Syracuse to what they say is a drinking water safety crisis caused by extraordinary levels of lead detected in city water.

In an open letter sent to the city, Onondaga County, state leaders and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the National Resource Defense Council (NRDC), an international nonprofit environmental organization, the New York Civil Liberties Union and others urged officials to declare an emergency based on health harms related to lead levels in city water.

The NRDC said the city of Syracuse substantially exceeded the federal level for lead in drinking water and is now among the highest reported lead levels found in a large water system in recent decades, exceeding the water contamination crisis in Flint, Michigan. It cites summer of 2024 data from the water department obtained through a Freedom of Information Law request. 

The letter (see below) also asks leaders to fully inform city residents about the potential risks posed, and to take decisive actions to address lead in the city’s tap water. It's signed by 12 medical providers, residents and national group members.

“Syracuse has one of the worst lead poisoning problems in the United States," Oceanna Fair, south branch leader with Syracuse-based Families for Lead Freedom Now, said in a NRDC press statement released Wednesday. "Testing shows more than 9 percent of our children citywide have very high blood lead levels, and in some parts of the city nearly 1-in-5 kids are affected."

The statement says "more than 14,000 homes in Syracuse use lead water pipes and are likely to have high levels of lead at the tap."

Chief Policy Officer Greg Loh responded for the city in a statement Wednesday, saying the water department responded transparently to its lead sampling results, and the data does not support the conclusion of an emergency situation or comparisons to other U.S. cities. 

He said 27 out of 104 homes recently sampled exceeded EPA action levels, and the results were outliers compared to sampling conducted over the past 10 years. Loh added the city announced the results and sent notifications to all residential properties about the findings.

"Eight properties with exceedances requested resampling; seven came back below the EPA action level," Loh said. "Results from the next round of EPA required testing are expected soon and will guide the next actions."

Syracuse’s water supply is sourced from Skaneateles Lake, which, along with city water mains, is free of lead, Loh said. Lead is sometimes present in water pipes that connect older homes to the water system, or in fixtures and home plumbing, he said.

The city projects that more than 3,000 lead services will be replaced in the next year, thanks, in part, to $22.8 million in state funding, Loh said.

Exposure to lead in drinking water or other sources can cause anemia, high blood pressure and kidney problems in adults, and behavioral issues, learning difficulties and hyperactivity in children.

In addition to declaring an emergency and increased transparency, the groups seek a point-of-use filters for residents with lead service lines, free blood lead testing, notifications of where lead lines are located, detailed plans for addressing the problem and more.

The groups set an Oct. 25 deadline for a reply with action steps, adding that it may seek emergency action from the EPA.

On its website, the city says the Syracuse Water Department is inventorying all water lines in its system and will be providing a public portal in the coming months where residents will be able to search if they have a lead water service in their home.

The city says it continues to perform lead and water quality monitoring of its water supply, and is removing lead service lines as they are encountered in project areas. 

If your home was built before 1986 and you have concerns of a lead water service line, you can visit here for a video from the New York state on how to identify if your water service line is lead.