Chicago has more than 400,000 lead water lines, the largest known municipal inventory of lead pipes in the country. Officials say replacing each one costs about $31,000 on average, more than than double the cost in most other U.S. cities.
Now, a federal mandate to remove every lead pipe within roughly 20 years’ time means Chicago is facing a $12-billion price tag to comply.
Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco, Midwest regional reporter for Grist and WBEZ Chicago, shares his reporting with Here & Now‘s Robin Young.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.