EPA Hosts First-Ever Public Demonstration of Emerging Technologies to Identify Lead Service Lines
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on November 10 hosted its first-ever public demonstration of emerging technologies to identify lead service lines, at its Lead Service Line Identification Test Bed in Edison, New Jersey. The tools on display could locate lead pipes faster, cheaper, and with less disturbance than traditional methods, helping water systems protect children's health.
Dartmouth University researchers demonstrated electromagnetic induction technology, which uses electromagnetic fields to induce and measure responses from buried metal pipes to distinguish materials such as lead and copper without exposing the pipes. A Drexel team demonstrated stress wave technology, generating mechanical vibrations by striking an extension rod connected to an accessible service line valve and capturing signals with ground sensors. EPA Region 2 Administrator Michael Martucci and Office of Applied Science and Environmental Solutions Associate Administrator Teresa Booeshaghi witnessed the demonstrations.
EPA opened the test bed at the Edison Environmental Center in 2025 to evaluate accurate, reliable, minimally invasive methods. Martucci said you can't replace what you can't find, and that better ways to locate lead pipes could make a tremendous difference for communities across the country.
(Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)
Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：美国环境保护署总部威廉·杰斐逊·克林顿联邦大楼（华盛顿）。Moreau1 摄，公共领域，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The William Jefferson Clinton Federal Building, EPA headquarters, in Washington. Photo by Moreau1, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
