Albany

The Capital Region's three major cites will get nearly $1.6 million from the state to replace old lead water pipes in a bid to protect people from drinking water tainted with the toxic metal.

"It is a start, a good start," said Joe Coffey, Albany city city commissioner for water and water supply, on Monday. While Albany got about $516,00 from the state Health Department under the new program, he said that is "not to be enough to replace the thousands of such pipes we have in the city."

Based on expenses for previous city replacement projects for lead service pipes on Elberon Place, the state grant could fund pipe replacements at between 100 and 260 residences. Coffey said the city does not have a comprehensive list of which homes have lead service pipes, and will have to determine the best approach to get the most for the money.

The cities of Schenectady and Troy also each received $516,000 grants as part of the $20 million program, which was added to the 2017-2018 state budget for the first time this spring.

The program targets cities that have a large number of homes that were built prior to 1939, when lead pipes often were used to connect residences to the city drinking water supply system. There are about 47,000 such homes from that era in the Capital Region, according to federal Census data.

Based on Albany's past expenses, the state grant for the region's three cities could pay to replace pipes at between 310 and 775 homes.

Lead is a potent neurotoxin that causes development deficits in children who are exposed to it. That can happen from water passing through lead pipes, or from lead-based paints that chip away from inside homes.

Albany County has seen an overall decrease from 3 percent of about 4,000 children tested in 2003 with elevated levels of lead in their system to about 1 percent of about 5,000 children tested in 2012, according to state health data.

State law requires health care providers to test all children for lead with a blood lead test by their first birthday and and again at age 2.

"These critical improvements to New York's drinking water infrastructure are vital to protecting public health and to laying the foundation for future growth and economic prosperity in these communities," according to a statement by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. "With this $20 million award, we are helping to protect residents and their families across this state and are creating a stronger, healthier New York."

Under the Clean Water Infrastructure Act of 2017, the state Health Department is awarding pipe replacement grants based on criteria including percentage of children with elevated blood levels, median household income, and the number of homes built before 1939.

Health Commissioner Howard Zucker said, "Public health begins with access to clean drinking water, and reducing lead exposure, especially in children, should always be a top priority. This state-wide program to replace residential lead pipes in areas of the state that need it most will improve the health of New Yorkers."

Health department officials believe replacement projects could start next spring. Elsewhere in the state, the Hudson Valley cities Poughkeepsie, Newburgh, Kingston and Middletown each received grants of $544,745.

In the Mohawk Valley, the cities of Utica and Gloversville each got $623,655. In the Southern Tier, the cities of Binghamton and Elmira each received $663,185.