Illinois Residents Issued Drinking Water Warning

Thousands of Americans have been warned that their drinking water has elevated levels of a contaminant, lead, posing a potential risk to public health.

Illinois American Water Company issued an alert on Monday to those it serves in Peoria District, a total of more than 120,000 Americans, according to the water information website Waterzen.

"We would like to inform you that during routine water testing in Peoria, certain test sites showed some samples with elevated levels of lead," the company wrote.

In 14 of the 103 samples tested, levels of lead were elevated, meaning they were higher than the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)'s action level of 15 parts per billion (ppb).

Illinois American Water Company told Newsweek: "Because Illinois recently changed reporting rules on lead, many other providers in other communities are experiencing to same issue.

New regulations were approved last fall for lead and copper levels in water, requiring water systems to replace lead services lines within 10 years and also dropping the previous action level of 15 ppb to 10 ppb, which companies must be compliant with by 2027.

"This recent change in the state lead rule impacted nearly two dozen other water providers," the company added.

"All are required to provide customer notice within the 24-hour notification requirement, per Illinois EPA. Illinois American Water immediately complied with the Illinois EPA's 24-hour notification requirement."

Why It Matters

As contaminants in water systems can pose risks to public health, particularly at levels higher than legally enforced by the EPA—and some even argue that these levels should be lowered—advocacy groups have called for advancing the treatment of drinking water to maximize public safety.

The Environmental Working Group (EWG)'s water contaminant database shows some harmful contaminants are present in drinking water cross the country at levels higher than the EPA's maximum contaminant levels.

The EWG also recently reported more than 50,000 lifetime cancer cases in the U.S. could be prevented if drinking water treatment adopted a "multi-contaminant approach, tackling several pollutants at once," highlighting the impact contaminated drinking can have in the long-term on public health.

What To Know

While the EPA has a new action level for lead at 10 ppb, the maximum contaminant level goal is set at zero because there is "no level of exposure to lead that is without risk," according to the ageny's guidelines.

Even at low levels of exposure, lead poses a risk to human health as it is persistent, meaning it can accumulate in the body.

In infants and children, lead can result in behavior and learning problems, as well as lower IQ and hyperactivity and other issues, the EPA warns. Birth outcomes can also be affected by a pregnant mother's exposure to lead, it says.

Adults exposed to lead can suffer from cardiovascular effects, increased blood pressure, hypertension, decreased kidney function, and reproductive problems.

However, as enforcing public drinking water services to adhere to a zero policy on lead is difficult, an action level makes water treatment expectations more "feasible."

Under the new changes, if 10 percent of samples checked by a company have water concentrations of lead greater than 10 ppb, the company "must perform actions such as public education and lead service line replacement," the EPA guidance states.

"Please understand that these test results are specific to each of the individual sites tested," Illinois American Water Company said in its alert. "We are working with customers whose samples showed elevated levels and have been notified of their specific location results."

Those in affected regions have been advised to flush their taps - as levels of lead can increase over time as the water sits in lead-containing plumbing materials - as well as to use cold water for drinking as hot water may contain more lead than cold water.

The Illinois American Water Company warned that "boiling water will not remove or reduce lead."

The company also recommended an alternative source of water, such as bottled water, for those who are more vulnerable to the impacts of lead exposure, including pregnant women, infants, and young children.

"This isn't necessarily cause for panic," Benjamin Huynh, a professor of environmental health and engineering at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Health, Maryland, told Newsweek.

"But it is concerning in the sense that low-level chronic exposure of lead to large populations will have widespread small health effects that we might not notice personally," he added.

He said that a "common misconception" is that the action level is a point at which lead in drinking water "stops being safe and becomes unsafe."

"It's more of a policy mechanism than a point of individual guidance — if enough samples exceed the action level, then authorities need to look into why that's occurring," Huynh said.

What People Are Saying

Benjamin Huynh, a professor of environmental health and engineering at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Health, Maryland, told Newsweek: "Lead in drinking water can come from three sources: contamination from the water treatment plant itself, contamination from lead pipes or service lines, contamination from lead fixtures, such as faucets, inside homes. We usually don't see the first scenario since they'll catch that before delivering to households, and the third does occur, but a systemic warning like the one issued in Peoria is probably due to the second scenario. Lead pipes might corrode over time, increasing the release of lead into drinking water."

He added: "I support the former federal administration's plan to replace all lead service lines in the country. Funding should be provided to local governments to enable and expedite this process. Still, this rollout will take time, so local governments should offer accessible testing services and water filters to affected communities in the meantime. Water filters should be certified (NSF/ANSI 53 and 58) to reduce lead. At the individual level, I encourage people to get their water tested and buy filters, and to help your neighbors and community members get tested and stay informed."

Illinois American Water Company said: "If the water in your faucet has gone unused for more than six hours, flush the tap with cold water for 30 seconds to two minutes before drinking or using it to cook. If your service line is lead, you may need to flush the water for three to five minutes. To conserve water, catch the running water and use it to water your plants. Use cold water for drinking, cooking and making baby formula. Hot water has the potential to contain more lead than cold water. If hot water is needed for cooking or baby formula, heat cold water on the stove or in the microwave."

What Happens Next

Illinois American Water Company said it would be conducting additional lead and other water quality monitoring to "determine the extent of the situation as well as any site-specific concerns."

For those who have any questions or concerns related to their drinking water quality in the Peoria District or are interested in receiving a lead sampling kit, they can contact the Illinois American Water Company Water Quality Team at [email protected].

Update 07/16/25, 04:23 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with comment from Illinois American Water Company and Benjamin Huynh.