Supplying water to a sprawling metropolis like New York City isn’t exactly a walk in Central Park. The city is expected to provide water to more than 9 million people within the next 30 years. Nevertheless, things have gotten better for the city’s overtaxed utilities, as the demand for clean water is 33 percent lower now than it was 30 years ago.

Manhattan residents got some well-earned relief when Mayor Michael Bloomberg led the opening of the city’s newest water tunnel—Tunnel No. 3—that will take Tunnel No. 1’s place as the primary aquatic tunnel for the most populous of the five boroughs. The following excerpt from The New York Times gives us more information:

In one of the most significant milestones for the city’s water supply in nearly a century, the tunnel—authorized in 1954, begun in 1970 and considered the largest capital construction project ever undertaken in the five boroughs—will for the first time be equipped to provide water for all of Manhattan. Since 1917, the borough has relied on Tunnel No. 1, which was never inspected or significantly repaired after its opening.

Tunnel No. 3 will ease the stress on the city’s two other water tunnels. Two more segments are planned, which will distribute clean water to the other boroughs, namely Queens and Brooklyn. It’s expected to be fully operational by 2021, and will provide clean water to every household within the tunnel’s service area.

This is where small solutions like pipes, taps, and quality Lead Free Fittings come into the picture. Since the enactment of the Safe Drinking Water Act in 1974, as well as its amendments in 1986 and 1996, lead reduction has been the primary agenda of clean water distribution. Section 1417 of the Act restricts lead content in pipes and pipe fittings to no more than 8 percent to be considered “lead-free.”

However, with the enactment of the Reduction of Lead in Drinking Water Act, soon, “lead-free” will pertain to pipes and pipe fittings that have an average lead content of no more than 0.25 percent. This Act, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, will primarily affect brass and bronze. Trusted suppliers like Gruner Brass Fittings Corp have complied by revising the lead content in their durable Lead Free Compression Fittings, which are specifically used in residential and industrial plumbing, as well as water management systems.

(Article Excerpt and Image from After Decades, a Water Tunnel Can Now Serve All of Manhattan; The New York Times; October 16, 2013)