{"id":155383,"date":"2023-02-04T23:08:52","date_gmt":"2023-02-05T07:08:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/?p=155383"},"modified":"2023-02-04T23:08:52","modified_gmt":"2023-02-05T07:08:52","slug":"president-biden-on-the-administrations-efforts-to-replace-lead-pipes-and-provide-clean-drinking-water-for-all-americans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/?p=155383","title":{"rendered":"President Biden on the Administration\u2019s Efforts to Replace Lead Pipes and Provide Clean Drinking Water for All Americans"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Philadelphia, PA&#8230;I want you all to know \u2014 I want you to know, baby: You did so much for so many kids.  Think about it.  What you went through, you\u2019re changing the life of thousands and thousands and millions of kids in America.  So, we owe you a big round of applause.  (Applause.)   And I love your earrings.  (Laughter.)  Thank you. <\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/J0IqDmuufI0\" title=\"President Biden and Vice President Harris Deliver Remarks on Water Infrastructure Investment\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Well, folks \u2014 hello, Philadelphia!<\/p>\n<p>AUDIENCE:  Hello!<\/p>\n<p>THE PRESIDENT:  I\u2019m Jill Biden\u2019s husband.  (Laughter.)  She\u2019s a Philly girl.  So, the first thing I\u2019m going to say is: Go Eagles!  Fly, Eagles, fly!  (Applause.) <\/p>\n<p>Now, the good news is I happen to mean it.  But even if I didn\u2019t, I\u2019d say it.  You know why?  Otherwise, I\u2019d be sleeping alone.  (Laughter.) <\/p>\n<p>She is \u2014 everybody sit down.  As the Mayor knows, she is one self-assured Philly fan.  (Laughter.)  No matter what.  My wife hates violence, she says.  But I told Bobby Casey this: We went to a Flyers game a couple years ago, and the fi- \u2014 and the Secret Service is in a box next to us the \u2014 anyway.  And there\u2019s a \u2014 a fight breaks out.  And my wife, who hates violence, goes, \u201cHit him! Get him!\u201d  Jumping up.  (Laughter.)  The Secret Service looking \u2014 \u201cWhere the heck did that come from?\u201d  (Laughter.)<\/p>\n<p>But anyway, thank you, Kamala.  Thank you very much.<\/p>\n<p>You guys don\u2019t have to stand up here.  Come on.  Why don\u2019t you go \u2014 (The Vice President and guests leave stage.)<\/p>\n<p>You\u2019ve been a leader on this issue for a long time, because you know how much it matters. <\/p>\n<p>And, Mayor Jim Kenney, thank you for the passport back into the city, man. <\/p>\n<p>You know, for years and years, the \u2014 when Delaware didn\u2019t have its own television station before \u2014 ev- \u2014 everything was Philadelphia, I was as popular in Philly as I was everywhere else.  You know what I mean?  They had to cover us, you know?  I mean \u2014<\/p>\n<p>AUDIENCE MEMBER:  (Inaudible.)<\/p>\n<p>THE PRESIDENT:  (Laughs.)  Well, I don\u2019t know about if I still am.  (Laughter.) <\/p>\n<p>But \u2014 but I\u2019m happy to be here with the new governor, Josh Shapiro.  Josh, you\u2019re going to be a great governor.  (Applause.) <\/p>\n<p>And I\u2019m mildly partial to Bob Casey.  (Laughter.)  He\u2019s \u2014 he\u2019s from Scrahton.  Not Scranton, Scrahton.  And he \u2014 we lived not very far from one another when I was up there as a kid.  And I still go home.<\/p>\n<p>And I want to thank you for \u2014 we\u2019re going to make sure, Bobby, that rail line goes back, like it was in 1970, from Scranton to New York.  (Applause.)  We\u2019re going to make sure that happens.<\/p>\n<p>And, John Fetterman, you\u2019ve been a great partner, pal.  And you\u2019ve only been there exactly one month.  But you\u2019ve been a fighter not only for Pittsburgh but for the whole country.  (Applause.) <\/p>\n<p>And, Dwight Evans, you\u2019ve been a good friend and a great supporter representing the community.  (Applause.)<\/p>\n<p>And, look, the relentless work of other members of Congress are helping make so much progress. <\/p>\n<p>I want to thank our EPA Administrator, Michael Regan.  (Applause.)  He is doing a great job.  He was down doing a great job in North Carolina, and we went \u2014 just stole him.  Just flat stole him.  (Laughter.)  But you\u2019re doing a great job, Michael.  Thank you very much.<\/p>\n<p>And thanks to the folks who run this plant and fix our water system here in Philly: AFSCME, plumbers and pipefitters, laborers \u2014 (applause) \u2014 all helping deliver clean water.<\/p>\n<p>And, by the way, all this money we\u2019re spending, it\u2019s going to hire union workers.  (Applause.)  Union workers.<\/p>\n<p>But before I begin, I want to say a word about the jobs report we talked about this morning.  Next week, we\u2019re reporting on the state of the Union.  I\u2019ll be doing that from the Capitol.  And \u2014 but I reported today on the state of the economy.<\/p>\n<p>This morning\u2019s report showed that we added \u2014 the economy is strong.  We added more jobs \u2014 over half a million jobs this last month.  And \u2014 and the reinv- \u2014 rea- \u2014 the reca- \u2014 recalibration of last month was another half a million.  We\u2019ve created 12 million jobs \u2014 (applause) \u2014 12 million jobs since we took office.  That\u2019s the strongest two-year growth in the history and by a long shot.<\/p>\n<p>And I want to thank the members of Congress here who are the ones who supported that, my initiatives that have made this possible. <\/p>\n<p>Look, my dad used to have an expression.  He\u2019d say, \u201cJoey, a job is about a lot more than a paycheck.  It\u2019s about your dignity.  It\u2019s about respect.  It\u2019s to be able to look your kid in the eye and say, \u2018Honey, it\u2019s going to be okay.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s now 12 million more Americans who can look at their kid and say, \u201cIt\u2019s going to be okay.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And what it\u2019s done mostly is provide dignity for those families \u2014 dignity to be able to do that.  Because there\u2019s nothing worse than not being able to provide for your family as a mother or a father.  And it gives people a sense of self-worth. <\/p>\n<p>We\u2019re here today to talk about the progress we\u2019re making in rebuilding America\u2019s infrastructure.  And with the help of this delegation, I signed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, a once-in-a-generation investment, putting Americans to work to rebuild our nation\u2019s roads, highways, bridges, railroads, ports, airports, high-speed Internet, our water systems, and so much more. <\/p>\n<p>I was given a copy of a speech that I made about 30 years ago, saying we need an infrastructure bill to deal with water.  I\u2019m not joking.  I had forgotten that they just \u2014 they dug it up for me.<\/p>\n<p>But the point is: We\u2019ve been needing this for a long time.  This is not new.  I remember starting off and working like hell on the lead paint initiative because that was such a problem.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ve traveled the country in recent weeks and seen this law in action.  A massive new bridge over the Ohio River between Kentucky and Ohio.  A huge tunnel along the Amtrak line in Baltimore and New York \u2014 billions of dollars.  Pennsylvania alone is going to get 8-1 \u2014 8-point \u2014 it got $8.1 billion so far, as the Gov can tell you.  (Applause.)<\/p>\n<p>And just outside Pittsburgh, because of the senator, we just spent $850 million to replace a hundred-year-old bridge and the Montgomery Lock and Dam system that\u2019s critical to our nation\u2019s economy is coming.  An investment to increase the capacity of the system by over 50 percent at a critical chokepoint. <\/p>\n<p>You know, Bobby Casey has been talking to me about this for so long, I think we\u2019re going to call it the \u201cCasey Lock\u201d \u2014 (laughter) \u2014 when it\u2019s done.<\/p>\n<p>But, look, I\u2019m here today to talk about an issue affecting Americans across the country: water.  You think it\u2019s silly, but water \u2014 you know, the issue has to do with basic dignity.  Every American deserves to be able to turn on their water tap or faucet and be able to drink clean water. <\/p>\n<p>The \u2014 we\u2019re the richest, most prosperous nation in the world.  Water ought to be something that\u2019s just guaranteed.  But, unfortunately, that\u2019s not the case.<\/p>\n<p>Right now, there are an estimated 160,000 service lines carrying water into homes and schools in Pennsylvania, including an estimated 20,000 lines for homes here in the state of \u2014 in the city of Philadelphia.  Ten million families across the country and hundreds of thousands of schools and \u2014 where schoolchildren and darecay [sic] \u2014 daycare centers exist that their water is pumped through lead pipes, lead valves, and lead fixtures. <\/p>\n<p>And, folks, look, the problem is almost in every state, but it\u2019s especially bad in older cities in the Midwest and here in the Northeast.  Many houses built in the last century, and the average age of water and sewer pipes in the U.S. is nearly 50 years old.  And they\u2019re often even older in major cities like Philadelphia.  Many water mains and pipes in the country are nearing the end of their useful lives. <\/p>\n<p>And our water systems break down, the pipes start to deteriorate, exposure to lead in pipes increases.  And beyond lead pipes, there\u2019s as many as 24 million housing units that have significant, significant problems with lead-based paint. <\/p>\n<p>And here\u2019s why it matters.  I know we talk about it generically, but it really matters.  Exposure to lead impacts children\u2019s brain development.  It\u2019s hazardous to their health.  No amount of lead in water is safe.  None.  No amount is safe.  It can damage the brain and kidneys, interfere with the production of red blood cells that the body needs to carry oxygen. <\/p>\n<p>And despite these dangerous health effects, the CDC estimates that over half of American children could be exposed to lead, with the exposure often coming from their own homes.  The problem disproportionately affects low-income families.  As Dwight said, people of color are much more likely to live in homes where lead exposure is an issue. <\/p>\n<p>This is the United States of America, for God\u2019s sake.  This is the Un- \u2014 we know better than that.  And we know we\u2019re proving it. <\/p>\n<p>Look, the Vice President and I made a commitment to replace every single service line in every part of the country over the next decade, by using \u2014 (applause) \u2014 not most, every.  We\u2019re using every tool at our disposal to get it done. <\/p>\n<p>When I took office, I signed the American Rescue Plan, which the governor indirectly referred to, that sent $350 billion to state and local governments.  And we said they could use it for things like replacing lead lines and lead fixtures in their communities.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m proud the City of Pittsburgh used \u2014 Pittsburgh, now; I didn\u2019t mis- \u2014 I\u2019m not misspeaking here \u2014 (laughter) \u2014 used $17.5 million as part of their plan to replace lead service lines in the city by 2026.  They got to do that through this state and throughout \u2014 we got to do it throughout the country. <\/p>\n<p>Today we\u2019re here to talk about a record funding for the Infrastructure Law that provides clean water with $15 billion \u2014 with a \u201cB\u201d \u2014 (applause) \u2014 set aside specifically for lead pipes or lead service removal. <\/p>\n<p>Pennsylvania, as referenced earlier, already has gotten $240 million they can use to upgrade the water system, and they\u2019ll get an additional funding each year for the next four years. <\/p>\n<p>They sent $160 million of that money here to Philadelphia to upgrade water treatment plants and to replace older water mains and lead pipes.  Philadelphia\u2019s Water Department is going to start by using the money to replace approximately 19 miles of 100-year-old water lines.  They\u2019re 100 years old.<\/p>\n<p>Today, we\u2019re announcing a $340 million loan, which is under a program that exists in the government, of very low interest rates, and a stretched time to pay it back.  And you\u2019ll be able to save a lot of money in the process, and lives.<\/p>\n<p>The first $20 million pl- \u2014 the first $20 million is going to replace 160 service lines and 15 miles of distribution mains, which are going to protect public health and prevent additional watermain breaks.<\/p>\n<p>Look, we\u2019re also announcing that Pennsylvania is one of four states that\u2019s part of a new partnership with mayors and governors and labor leaders to accelerate the replacement of lead pipes in places that need it the most, where their pipes haven\u2019t repla- \u2014 haven\u2019t been replaced for half a century. <\/p>\n<p>We\u2019re not just doing this work here in Philly, we\u2019re doing it across the country, from coast to coast, in the American Heartland.<\/p>\n<p>Just over a year ago, we launched the Lead Pipe and Paint Action Plan to coordinate 10 different federal agencies \u2014 get all 10 of them together so that we could pool money and get it out the door quickly.<\/p>\n<p>Since the start of the Biden-Harris administration, we\u2019ve already put more than $5 billion to work in big cities.  And places to work going to increase \u2014 and we\u2019re going to increase the amount of money in the years to come.  This is a 10-year project for all of this we\u2019re \u2014 we\u2019re going to be doing.  Not the individual project, but 10 years the money is going to be available.<\/p>\n<p>And one of the things about Infrastructure Law that I\u2019m most excited about is we\u2019re doing this with American workers and with products made in America and with union labor.  (Applause.)  That\u2019s the condition we wrote into it.<\/p>\n<p>And I know \u2014 and maybe even some of you, you think I\u2019m too pro-union.  Well, it\u2019s not \u2014 I\u2019m \u2014 but I \u2014 there\u2019s a reason for this.  You know, everybody talks about college education.  Well, to be a plumber and pipefitter, what the hell do you think it takes?  It takes you four to five years of an apprenticeship, like going back to school, like going to four years of college.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s why we have the best workers in the world \u2014 the union workers \u2014 because they\u2019re the best trained in the world, and that\u2019s not hyperbole.  (Applause.)<\/p>\n<p>Laborers, plumbers, pipefitters, union, electricians, carpenters, cement masons, ironworkers, steelworkers, communication workers, and so much more.<\/p>\n<p>And, folks, look, these are good jobs you can raise a family on.  And they don\u2019t require a college degree, because you have, in a sense, a college degree through the apprenticeship program, which is one reason why the United States, as I said, has the best-trained workers in the world. <\/p>\n<p>It\u2019d be a digression to get into it, but we did the Sci- \u2014 the CHIPS and Science Act.  Well, guess what?  One of the people who is investing over \u2014 one of the companies investing over $80 billion in that, I asked why they\u2019re investing in it.  They said, \u201cYou have the best workers in the world.\u201d  And it\u2019s coming out of South Korea.  \u201cThe best workers in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Let me close with this.  Folks, this isn\u2019t complicated.  Every person in this country deserves to be able to turn on a faucet and have clean drinking water.  And through the Infrastructure Law, we\u2019re making historic investments to make sure that they can.<\/p>\n<p>When America sees us making these investments all across America \u2014 replacing these pipes, building roads and bridges and \u2014 it sends a message: We can really do big things. <\/p>\n<p>I think America, over the previous five, six, seven years, began to wonder whether we could do big things.  There\u2019s nothing \u2014 and I mean this.  Think about this now, from a historical perspective.  There\u2019s nothing we\u2019ve ever set our mind to as a country that we haven\u2019t succeeded in doing.  Nothing.  Nothing.<\/p>\n<p>We\u2019re the only country in the world that comes out of every crisis stronger than we went in.  And that\u2019s what we\u2019re doing on the economy now, and that\u2019s what we\u2019re doing under this infrastructure legislation.  We can move this nation forward. <\/p>\n<p>And I want to send another message, too.  It\u2019s a message of pride \u2014 pride in our country, pride in our capability.  Pride.  Pride in what we can do when we do it together.<\/p>\n<p>And it generates a sense of self-worth.  It generates a sense of self-worth, knowing that you can provide for your family. <\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ve long said: It\u2019s never been a good bet \u2014 never, ever been a good bet to bet against America.  And I can honestly say \u2014 and I mean this sincerely \u2014 and a lot of Philadelphians know me; I\u2019ve been around for a long time: I have never, ever, ever, ever been more optimistic about America\u2019s chances in the world than I am today.  Never.<\/p>\n<p>We\u2019re at one of those inflection points in world history where things are going to change dramatically over the next couple of years.  And what we do over the next couple of years is going to determine \u2014 next four or five years \u2014 what the country is going to look like and the world is going to look like 20, 30 years from now.<\/p>\n<p>We reach those inflection points every five or six generations, maybe fewer.  And that\u2019s who we are.  We\u2019re leading the world once again.  We are the nation that the rest of the world looks to.<\/p>\n<p>Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright was right.  We are the \u201cessential nation.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>We got to remember who in God\u2019s name we are.  We\u2019re the United States of America.  There is nothing \u2014 nothing beyond our capacity.  Nothing. <\/p>\n<p>And the least we can do, although it\u2019s going to be incredibly expensive and take a little bit of time, is make sure that those 400,000 schools and daycare centers and the like, when they turn on water at that school, their tap and the fountain, that that water is clean and pure.  We owe it to our kids and grandkids.<\/p>\n<p>God bless you all.  And thank you for what you\u2019re doing.  (Applause.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Philadelphia, PA&#8230;I want you all to know \u2014 I want you to know, baby: You did so much for so many kids. Think about it. What you went through, you\u2019re changing the life of thousands and thousands and millions of kids in America. So, we owe you a big round of applause. (Applause.) And I [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":155384,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_cbd_carousel_blocks":"[]","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20,5,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-155383","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-government","category-news","last_archivepost"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Fullscreen-capture-242023-110749-PM.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/155383","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=155383"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/155383\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":155385,"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/155383\/revisions\/155385"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/155384"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=155383"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=155383"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=155383"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}