The New Kensington Municipal Water Authority is replacing lead lines in New Ken and Arnold to comply with federal regulations.
The project to replace 115 service lines, which started at the beginning of the year, will wrap up in a few weeks, said the authority’s Distribution Superintendent Ed Saliba Jr.
The water authority received a $1.4 million grant and an additional $74,000 loan from the Pennsylvania Infrastructure Investment Authority, also known as PennVEST, for the replacement.
“This is a very good savings to the authority that we didn’t have to spend our monies to do that, and it’s also improving the system,” Saliba said.
Saliba said lines in New Kensington’s Parnassus neighborhood are part of the project.
The funding came from a larger statewide investment of $243 million for projects across 23 counties. The money was granted in April 2025.
Any private service lines containing lead will be replaced up to the house connection.
Lead is known to cause health problems, including heart disease, decreased kidney function, fertility issues and it can stunt child development, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency .
In 1991, Pennsylvania banned its use in new pipe construction and in 2024, then-President Joe Biden changed federal guidelines, requiring water providers to replace all lead lines by 2037.
Projects elsewhere
In Westmoreland and Armstrong counties, other lines are set for upgrades, too.
In 2025, the Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County (MAWC) received a $4.6 million grant and a $5.4 million loan from PennVEST to replace 1,000 of the 2,700 lines across Hyde Park, East Vandergrift, Vandergrift, West Leechburg, Leechburg, Apollo, North Apollo and Parks Township.
“This is the first larger scale project for us,” said Matt Junker, a spokesperson for MAWC.
He said surveying will start in East Vandergrift first on April 6.
“We’re going to start with ‘potholing,’ which is just investigating,” he said. Potholing involves digging small test holes to accurately locate lines.
Junker said the surveying will also include asking homeowners if they want to opt-in to replace the parts of the lines that lay on their property, he said.
The buy-in for homeowners is $3,200, which they can pay up front or in installments of $28 with 1% interest on their monthly water bill, Junker said.
He said replacement in the eight communities could start in June at the earliest.
Junker said the local authority has until 2028 to spend the state money.
Last week, Pittsburgh Water reported the lowest ever lead levels in its water system after replacing 14,000 lines in the past decade.
