Our Mission

Act as the frontline community oversight group to monitor the removal of lead plumbing in Milwaukee.

OUR AIMS

Advocate for the removal of lead laterals and other lead plumbing in the city's timeline of ten years or less. Monitor the city's compliance with federal and local policies and ordinances while removing lead laterals. Provide clarity about the dangers of lead in water by educating the community using plain language. Interpret legislative and regulatory information from the city, the EPA, and other governmental sources to provide accessible information to the community.

OUR VALUES

We are a grassroots coalition of citizens and community organizations fighting for the removal of the toxic lead pipe infrastructure in Milwaukee. Our coalition believes it will require sustained pressure at the community level to demand that lead service lines be replaced in ten years or less. To date, the city has only recently agreed to this timeline, initially offering a protracted timeline of 70 years to remove the nearly 70,000 lead laterals that service the oldest, poorest neighborhoods in Milwaukee. They have ignored the public health issue for over a hundred years, and community oversight is key. We believe that without watchdogs like Get the Lead Out, the city will regress to their absurdly slow pace and obfuscation of the issue. Get the Lead Out demands transparent communication between the city officials and our community, as well as the ability to access information at no cost to ensure the city is doing what they promised since history has demonstrated that the city cannot be trusted to do the right thing when no one is watching. We are asking concerned citizens to call or email city officials to demand that a comprehensive plan to remove the lead pipes as well as lead based paint and dust be developed and implemented.