In January 2021, the Michigan Clean Water Public Advocate (CWPA) initiated a water leak pilot program in two communities: Highland Park in Southeast Michigan and Benton Harbor in Southwest Michigan. The goal of the pilot project was to provide plumbing services to stop supply-side leaks in up to 100 homes in each community. The budget averaged $800 per home in each community with a total of $160,000 available for plumbing support, $80,000 in each community.
The CWPA recruited a team from the University of Michigan Water Center and Safe Water Engineering to provide an overall program evaluation. The evaluation was intended to learn from the pilot process from all perspectives — residents, plumbers, community-based organizations doing outreach, local media partners, state agency partners, and local governments and organizations.
The lessons learned from this project are applicable for a wide variety of projects that involve engineers, local, or state agencies working closely with community members, accessing their homes, providing repairs or upgrades, and/or seeking specific behavior changes. These recommendations should be incorporated in any future water leak or lead service line replacement project.
- There should be an overall program manager with authority to work across agencies, ensure all contractors or project participants know their roles/responsibilities and those of their colleagues, and coordinate among all contractors. This individual should provide regular updates to all contractors, especially when processes are updated or changed in any way.
- The program manager should work with community groups to find the appropriate education/engagement outlets for a given community/audience, trusted messengers, and use those outlets regularly throughout the program. Repetition is key to adopting behavior change.
- The program manager should appoint community organizers to shepherd residents through the entire process of the program. This individual or organization should be known to and trusted by the community. They will be in position to help community members
>> Download the Evaluation Report