When it comes to drinking water, some see Newark as a model for cities trying to get the lead out

New Jersey Advance Media
Steve Strunsky

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It was a freezing afternoon in Newark, and a work crew was busy on South 17th Street replacing a lead service line that for the better part of a century had connected a three-family house to a city water main but in recent years was deemed — along with thousands of others like it — to be a potential health risk after testing revealed dangerous levels of lead in tap water around the city.

Using what’s known as a pull-through method that requires some excavation but avoids digging trenches across streets, sidewalks and front yards, the crew from city contractor Roman E&G Corp. disconnected the 1-inch service line from the water meter in the basement, and from the underground water main crews had dug down to access below the street.