WKSU News: Ohio Rep. Boccieri calls for speedier water warnings

Monday, February 1, 2016 Ohio Rep. Boccieri calls for speedier water warnings The Sebring water crisis is raising awareness of the lag time allowed for water contamination warnings by WKSU's JEFF ST. CLAIR	Reporter / Host Jeff St. Clair

State Rep. John Boccieri (D-Poland) today announced legislation to establish clear standards for water testing and public notification procedures in cases of lead contamination.

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In light of recent revelations concerning the amount of time it took for Sebring residents to learn about problems with lead contamination in their drinking water, one Ohio lawmaker is trying to speed up the warning process. Statehouse correspondent Andy Chow reports.

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The Ohio EPA went months before warning residents of Sebring that their water was contaminated with lead.

Democratic Rep. John Boccieri of the Youngstown area wants to pass a law requiring officials to notify people about a contamination within 30 days of the discovery.

“This is a small, rural community in western Mahoning County," says Boccieri, "and I just think there was no sense of urgency and that’s what I want to get down to.”

Boccieri adds that the government also needs to deal with the larger issue of crumbling, aging water pipelines.