Lead-tainted water flowing through area faucets

Lead affects specific homes in Oregon City, Beavercreek and West Linn

By Matthew Graham

The Oregon City News, Sep 15, 2008, Updated Oct 30, 2009 (2 Reader comments)

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A recent test of drinking water in the Oregon City, Beavercreek and West Linn areas indicated potentially dangerous levels of lead in the water in high-risk homes throughout the area.

The Environmental Protection Agency required the test and does not require action for lead levels of less than 15 parts per billion in the water. But in those three areas – served by South Fork Water Board (SFWB) – some testing sites reached 89 parts per billion, several times the acceptable level, according to Gordon McGhee, the water quality team leader for Clackamas River Water, which serves the unincorporated area outside of Oregon City.

McGhee said the problem was not with the system or the plant, but with individual customer’s water intakes. He said some homes built in the 1980s used lead to solder copper pipes together. Some homes may also have lead pipes, but McGhee said those are much less common and are simply replaced when they’re discovered.

Lead can cause damage to the brain, kidneys, nervous system and red blood cells, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Children and pregnant women are most susceptible to damage, even from short-term exposure.

Are you at risk?

If your home as built between 1982 and 1985 and is served by Oregon City, West Linn, or Clackamas River Water south of the Clackamas River, then you may be at risk, said McGhee.

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