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EPA Lead Service Line Identification Test Bed (Edison Environmental Center)

Field Value
Record ID EVID-0001
Type evidence
Title EPA Lead Service Line Identification Test Bed (Edison Environmental Center)
Status reviewed
Confidence high
Updated 2026-09-09
Source URL https://www.epa.gov/water-research/lead-service-line-identification-test-bed
Topics pipe_materials, underground_utility_detection, electromagnetic
Archived source retained internally

Citation

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Lead Service Line Identification Test Bed. EPA Water Research. https://www.epa.gov/water-research/lead-service-line-identification-test-bed. Accessed 2026-09-09.

Source

URL above. Local capture: Archived source: retained internally

Why This Source Matters

This is the primary public description of the Edison facility named in the pre-proposal and in the ESTCP reviewer comment. It defines what the test bed is designed to evaluate and who to contact for collaboration.

Source-Faithful Summary

EPA installed a test bed at the Edison Environmental Center in New Jersey to evaluate potential lead service line identification technologies. It is not a certification program. It is described as a stable location with controlled conditions for consistent, independent evaluation. The bed has seven pipe sections with different evaluation purposes. EPA states it will test technologies listed in a 2024 state-of-the-technology review, giving metal detectors as an example. Collaboration is open to technology developers, states, utilities, universities, and other organizations.

Relevant Facts

  • Location: EPA Edison Environmental Center, New Jersey.
  • Purpose: evaluate emerging lead service line identification technologies; gather performance data for states, public water systems, and regulators.
  • Not a certification program.
  • Seven sections:
  • Section 1: mimics a service line from water main to a residence; evaluates technologies that look across an entire service line; buried pipes can be pressurized and incorporate typical construction components.
  • Section 2: different service line materials at different depths in different soil types, such as sand, silt, and clay.
  • Section 3: distinguish water and gas lines and other materials when buried near each other.
  • Section 4: mixed-material segments in series, such as copper and lead.
  • Section 5: additional aspects not covered in Sections 1–4; pipes of various materials available for burial.
  • Section 6: calibration with pipes of known material at known depths.
  • Section 7: differentiate pipe material at various depths under concrete and asphalt.
  • Example technology named for testing: metal detectors.
  • Cited review: USEPA (2024), Review of Minimally Invasive Technologies for Detecting Lead Service Lines Without Excavation.
  • Contacts listed: Michael Borst (Project Technical Lead, [email retained internally]); Colin White (IIJA-LSL Project Coordinator, [email retained internally]); Christina Devine (Project Team Member, [email retained internally]); Michael Moeykens (Branch Chief, Water Infrastructure Sciences Branch, [email retained internally]).

Quantitative Data

Variable Value Units Conditions Source Location
Number of test sections 7 sections Edison test bed Design and Capabilities
Known LSLs (national context) more than 5 million lines EPA survey of states Background
Unknown-material service lines (national context) estimated 20 million lines EPA survey of states Background

The page does not publish pipe diameters, exact burial depths, soil thicknesses, or measured detection rates.

Relevant Figures / Tables

  • Aerial view of the test bed, shown to scale, with seven sections.
  • Photo captioned as a metal detector being tested for buried lead service lines.
  • Installation photographs of Section 4 marking, trenching, and pipe placement.

What This Source Supports

  • Edison is a controlled, independent evaluation site for emerging LSL identification technologies.
  • The facility is designed to test full service-line configurations, soil variation, nearby utilities, mixed-material segments, calibration, and pavement overlays.
  • External collaborators can request access.
  • Metal detection is an example class EPA expects to test.

What This Source Does NOT Establish

  • No quantitative performance results for any sensor.
  • No GPR, EMI array, acoustic, or UAV results.
  • No published as-built depths, diameters, or exact material list beyond examples (copper and lead; sand, silt, clay; concrete and asphalt).
  • No statement that ESTCP projects have exclusive use of the site.

Conflicting / Qualifying Evidence

EVID-0002 (2024 poster) described the Edison test bed as future work. This page describes it as installed. Treat the poster as earlier planning language, not a contradiction about current existence.

Potential Proposal Use

  • Demonstration site description.
  • Task 2 test-matrix mapping onto existing Edison sections.
  • Collaboration contacts.
  • Argument that HM should use the facility's ground truth rather than rebuild an equivalent buried test set.

Linked Findings

  • FINDING-0001

Linked Questions

  • Q04
  • Q03
  • Q01