OCWA, Central New York’s Water Authority, is continuing its proactive initiative to identify the type of material used to construct customer water service lines throughout our five-county system. Compiling an inventory of customers with lead pipes will soon be a requirement of the revised Federal Lead and Copper Rule. We are continuing to contact OWCA customers whose account information is either incomplete or may need updating.
It is important to understand that ownership of water service lines is shared between homeowners and OCWA. OCWA owns the portion of the water service line from the water main to the curb box located at the property line. Customers are responsible for the portion of the service line from the outlet side of the curb box to the water meter or main shutoff valve inside their home, as well as their home’s internal plumbing and fixtures.
To help OCWA identify customers that have lead pipes, we encourage you to take a few minutes to test the materials in your home. The instructional video below will help give you step by step directions on how to check your service line.
Once you have determined your water service line materials you can submit your results two ways:
- calling OCWA’s Water Quality Department at 315-455-7061 ext. 3157; or
- entering the results online at http://www.ocwa.org/survey .
When filling out the online survey you will be asked to submit photos. The two photos you may submit are:
- a close-up picture of your service line where you performed the test; and
- a picture showing the entire service line, from where it comes through the wall or floor to and including the meter.