Chicago Has Thousands of Lead Pipes — and Millions of Unspent Dollars

"City officials on Monday said they plan to accelerate spending to replace lead service lines in 2026. The city also remains far behind telling Chicagoans of the health risks."

"CHICAGO—No U.S. city has more toxic lead pipes pumping water into people’s homes. And millions of federal and city dollars earmarked to replace them remain unused, a city official said Monday, at the same time that the city is struggling to keep up with deadlines to warn people of the risks.

Replacements of Chicago’s more than 412,000 confirmed and suspected lead service lines are lagging. The city doesn’t anticipate replacing all its pipes until 2076, some 30 years after a federal deadline. Lead plumbing can leach the toxic metal into drinking water, causing brain damage, developmental delays and other harms. 

Water department officials say they can’t afford to move as quickly as federal deadlines require, but Department of Finance debt manager Brendan White told a City Council committee on Monday that millions of federal and city dollars obligated for replacements haven’t been used yet. "

Keerti Gopal and Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco report for Inside Climate News September 22, 2025. This story is a partnership between Inside Climate News, Grist and WBEZ, a public radio station serving the Chicago metropolitan region.