Sangam: A Confluence of Knowledge Streams

Effectiveness of Prevailing Flush Guidelines to Prevent Exposure to Lead in Tap Water

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dc.contributor Civil and Environmental Engineering
dc.creator Katner, Adrienne
dc.creator Pieper, Kelsey J.
dc.creator Brown, Komal
dc.creator Lin, Hui-Yi
dc.creator Parks, Jeffrey L.
dc.creator Wang, Xinnan
dc.creator Hu, Chih-Yang
dc.creator Masters, Sheldon
dc.creator Mielke, Howard
dc.creator Edwards, Marc A.
dc.date 2018-07-25T12:55:39Z
dc.date 2018-07-25T12:55:39Z
dc.date 2018-07-20
dc.date 2018-07-25T12:41:02Z
dc.date.accessioned 2023-03-01T18:52:17Z
dc.date.available 2023-03-01T18:52:17Z
dc.identifier Katner, A.; Pieper, K.; Brown, K.; Lin, H.-Y.; Parks, J.; Wang, X.; Hu, C.-Y.; Masters, S.; Mielke, H.; Edwards, M. Effectiveness of Prevailing Flush Guidelines to Prevent Exposure to Lead in Tap Water. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15, 1537.
dc.identifier http://hdl.handle.net/10919/84386
dc.identifier https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15071537
dc.identifier.uri http://localhost:8080/xmlui/handle/CUHPOERS/281606
dc.description Flushing tap water is promoted as a low cost approach to reducing water lead exposures. This study evaluated lead reduction when prevailing flush guidelines (30 s&ndash;2 min) are implemented in a city compliant with lead-associated water regulations (New Orleans, LA, USA). Water samples (<i>n</i> = 1497) collected from a convenience sample of 376 residential sites (2015&ndash;2017) were analyzed for lead. Samples were collected at (1) first draw (<i>n</i> = 375) and after incremental flushes of (2) 30&ndash;45 s (<i>n</i> = 375); (3) 2.5&ndash;3 min (<i>n</i> = 373), and (4) 5.5&ndash;6 min (<i>n</i> = 218). There was a small but significant increase in water lead after the 30 s flush (vs. first draw lead). There was no significant lead reduction until the 6 min flush (<i>p</i> &lt; 0.05); but of these samples, 52% still had detectable lead (&ge;1 ppb). Older homes (pre-1950) and low occupancy sites had significantly higher water lead (<i>p</i> &lt; 0.05). Each sample type had health-based standard exceedances in over 50% of sites sampled (max: 58 ppb). While flushing may be an effective short-term approach to remediate high lead, prevailing flush recommendations are an inconsistently effective exposure prevention measure that may inadvertently increase exposures. Public health messages should be modified to ensure appropriate application of flushing, while acknowledging its short-comings and practical limitations.
dc.description Published version
dc.format application/pdf
dc.format application/pdf
dc.language en
dc.publisher MDPI
dc.rights Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
dc.rights http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.subject drinking water
dc.subject lead
dc.subject Pb
dc.subject flush
dc.subject exposure prevention
dc.subject intervention
dc.subject lead service line
dc.title Effectiveness of Prevailing Flush Guidelines to Prevent Exposure to Lead in Tap Water
dc.title International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
dc.type Article - Refereed
dc.type Text


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