Plymouth is mailing lead service line letters to some homeowners and says its source water has no lead

PLYMOUTH Plymouth homeowners whose water service line is made of lead or galvanized steel, or whose line's material the town does not yet know, will be getting a letter from the town's Water Division, according to a notice the town posted Monday, Nov. 9.

The Water Division is mailing the letters because the state Department of Environmental Protection requires it, the town said, and each homeowner who gets one will receive one of three versions: a letter saying a galvanized service line needs to be replaced, a letter saying the home has a lead service line, or a letter saying the line's material is unknown.

The town said there is no lead in Plymouth's source water and that it treats the water to control corrosion, which keeps lead from leaching out of pipes into the water, describing the letters as a precaution and a requirement that is new as of 2024.

What each letter means

A home that the town's records show has a lead or galvanized service line will get a letter that includes steps the household can take to lower its risk of lead exposure, according to the Water Division's lead service line page.

A home whose line could not be identified from the town's records is listed as unknown, and that letter will ask the homeowner for help figuring out what the pipe is made of, the page says, while a homeowner who gets no letter at all can assume the home has no lead or galvanized service line and does not need to do anything.

The town has finished an initial inventory of the service lines in its water system and posts an interactive map where customers can look up what is on record for their own property, and the Water Division said it will keep investigating the unknown lines through the rest of this year and into 2027 to bring that number down.

What the testing shows

In the most recent lead sampling listed in the town's 2025 Annual Drinking Water Quality Report, taken in 2024, 9 of every 10 homes tested were at or below 2.5 parts per billion, well under the action level of 15, and none of the 37 sites tested was above the action level, with results ranging from none detected to 14 parts per billion.

The same report says lead in drinking water comes primarily from materials and parts used in service lines and home plumbing, and that water systems had to build an inventory of their service line materials by Oct. 16, 2024, as the first step toward replacing lead lines.

What you can do now

• Look up your property on the Water Division's service line map, linked from the town's Lead Service Line Inventory page at plymouth-ma.gov.
• If you use a filter, the town says to make sure it is certified by NSF to remove lead, to follow the directions, and not to run hot water through it.
• Boiling water does not remove lead, the town says, and you cannot see, taste or smell lead in water.
• Before using tap water for drinking, cooking or making baby formula, the town's report says to flush the pipes for several minutes by running the tap, taking a shower or doing laundry or dishes, and longer if you have a lead line or a galvanized line that needs replacing.
• Children are at higher risk from lead, and the town points parents to their child's health care provider or the state Department of Public Health's Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program for a blood test.
• To have your water tested or to ask about your line, call the Plymouth DPW Water Division at 508-830-4162.

Label: Reported by us, from the town's posted records.