Lead pipes are not the only way that lead can leach into drinking water.
In-line lead (Pb) contributors, such as lead solder and brass fittings, used in the assembly of a copper piped water system, can have a major impact on lead leaching.
The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) calls for plumbing system components to be “lead free”, and prohibits the “use of any pipe, any pipe or plumbing fitting or fixture, any solder, or any flux, after June 1986, in the installation or repair of (i) any public water system; or (ii) any plumbing in a residential or non-residential facility providing water for human consumption, that is not lead free.”
The EPA’s action level for lead in the US is 15 ppb.
Other countries, including Canada, the European Union, UK, Mexico and China, are already observing the World Health Organization’s (WHO) 10 ppb cut off level for lead.