January 24, 2025
Committed to providing clean, safe water for all our customers
641.647.2416 or 800.233.8849

Lead Service Line Information

Lead Service Line Information

RRWA is committed to serving quality, reliable, and affordable drinking water to our customers. This commitment means complying with all regulations including the federal Lead and Copper Rule. Click here for answers to frequently asked questions about lead in drinking water and lead service lines.

Service Line Inventory Map

Click here for instructions to use the map


RRWA completed an initial inventory of service line material for all accounts in our service territory. This inventory was conducted to identify service lines made of lead or galvanized pipe previously connected to lead. Results of this inventory are presented on the map above. Information about the service line material for any account can be viewed by clicking on the icon that corresponds to the service line location. The map can be searched by entering the account number or property address if known. In most cases, RRWA owns the service line from the main to the meter pit and customers own the service line from the meter pit to their residence or other structure. RRWA’s mains and service lines to the meter pits are not made of lead.

RRWA customers can use the map to update information about their service lines. Search the map for a service line location by entering the account number or property address if known. Click on the icon for the service line location and then click on the survey link below the service line information. Complete the survey with updated information about the service line. Click here for instructions to use the map.


Lead Service Line Survey

RRWA needs help from our customers to update information about their service lines. Please complete the lead service line survey by clicking on the link below. Contact us with questions at 1-800-233-8849.

Lead Service Line Survey



Frequently Asked Questions

Exposure to lead in drinking water can cause serious health effects for people of all ages. Lead exposure can lead to developmental, learning, and behavioral problems in young children, infants, and fetuses. Adults can have increased risks of heart disease, high blood pressure, decreased kidney function, and nervous system problems.
Lead can get into drinking water when plumbing materials that contain lead corrode. The most common sources of lead in drinking water are lead pipes, faucets, and other fixtures. Water service lines that are made of lead can be the most significant source of lead in drinking water.
The water service line is the pipe connection that supplies drinking water to the plumbing of a house, business, or other structure from RRWA’s water main.
Water systems like RRWA are required to complete and update a lead service line inventory to comply with the Lead and Copper Rule established by the US Environmental Protection Agency. The Lead and Copper Rule was made to protect children and communities from the health risks of lead exposure in drinking water.
In most cases, RRWA owns the water service line from the water main to the customer’s meter pit. The customer owns the water service line from the meter pit to the house, business, or other structure.
None of the water mains and service lines installed by RRWA are made of lead. Most of RRWA’s water mains and service lines are made of PVC. The customer-owned portion of water service lines are usually made of plastic, copper, galvanized steel, or lead.
Customers can usually determine their water service line material by examining the pipe where it enters the house, business, or other structure. In Iowa, service lines installed for buildings constructed after 1988 are likely not lead due to a state ban on its use. For information on how to identify service line material, customers can read https://www.lslr-collaborative.org/identifying-service-line-material.html.
Customers who have lead service lines can take steps to reduce the risk of lead exposure in their drinking water. These steps include: (1) replace the lead service line; (2) make sure plumbing fixtures are certified as lead free; (3) use cold water for drinking and cooking; (4) flush out pipes when water hasn’t been used for several hours; (5) regularly clean faucet aerators; and (6) install a home filter certified to remove lead.
Customers can help RRWA identify lead water service lines by using the Service Line Inventory Map or completing the Lead Service Line Survey above.
The identification of lead water service lines will better enable RRWA to help our customers take steps to reduce the health risks of lead in drinking water. This information will also be used to improve the ability of RRWA to monitor for lead in drinking water.
Yes, RRWA continually monitors and adjusts the chemistry of drinking water supplied to our customers to ensure that it is not corrosive to any lead water pipes or fixtures. RRWA also uses an approved phosphate additive in the water treatment process which creates a coating on the inside of water pipes for corrosion control.
Customers interested in more information about lead in drinking water can visit https://www.epa.gov/ground-water-and-drinking-water/basic-information-about-lead-drinking-water. In addition, customers can always contact RRWA’s water treatment plant superintendent, Jeremy Buckingham, at 1-800-233-8849.