Toronto Water's annual report on its Lead in Drinking Water Mitigation Strategy for 2025, posted in May 2026, estimates that about 13,664 City-owned lead water services remained at the end of 2025. Toronto has about 437,000 residential water service connections. The report also repeats Toronto Public Health's advice that both the public and private sides of a lead service be replaced at the same time wherever possible.
The headline numbers
The answer first: the city's side of the problem is shrinking, and the private side is where homeowners need a plumber.
From the report:
- Remaining public-side lead services: about 13,664 at the end of 2025, down from an estimated 38,000 in a 2014 reassessment.
- Replacements logged for 2025: 1,035 in total, made up of 688 planned replacements during capital works, 206 through the Priority Lead Program and 141 emergency replacements. The City notes the capital-works figure is still under review because of delays in service card submissions, and will be confirmed in the 2026 report.
- Earlier years for comparison: 1,536 in 2024 and 2,567 in 2023.
- Where lead is found: service pipes in homes built before the mid-1950s, solder used before 1990, and leaded-brass fixtures such as faucets and valves.
What the testing showed
Toronto's water leaves its treatment plants lead-free; lead enters from pipes and fixtures. Since December 2014 the City has added phosphate at all four plants to coat pipes and reduce corrosion.
In 2025 the regulated sampling program was cut from 55 to 27 locations, in consultation with Ontario's environment ministry, because lead levels had fallen. The report says none of the regulated home and business samples exceeded 10 parts per billion, the current Ontario limit. It also notes that Health Canada lowered its guideline to 5 ppb in 2019 and that the province is considering the lower limit; one residential sample exceeded 5 ppb in 2025. The City continues to test residents' tap water at no cost through a non-regulated program.
How the City's programs work
Three programs drive replacements of substandard services:
- Priority Lead Water Service Replacement Program. An owner who commits to replacing the private portion can apply to have the City replace its side on a priority basis.
- Capital Water Service Replacement Program. The City replaces lead with copper during watermain, road and sewer work.
- Emergency replacement. When a service is broken or flow drops below seven litres per minute.
The City also sends certified faucet filters to homes after it replaces its section, and offers an annual $100 filter rebate to high-risk, low-income residents, according to the report.
What this means for Toronto plumbing companies
Every City-side replacement on a street with older homes is a moment when owners start asking about their own pipe. That is a legitimate, recurring source of private-side work, and it is local: it follows capital works schedules street by street.
A sensible approach for a plumbing company:
- Publish one clear page on private-side lead service replacement in Toronto: what it involves, how the Priority Lead Program works, and a link to the City's pages. Don't invent prices you can't stand behind.
- Watch for capital works in the neighbourhoods you serve; the City sends notices and direct mail to older homes where lead is suspected, so owners there are already informed.
- Coordinate, don't compete, with the City's message. The report says public health advice favours replacing both sides together. Your job is to make the private side easy to book.
- Avoid health scare copy. Lead is a real health concern, but medical claims belong to Toronto Public Health and Health Canada. Link them.
How the trend has moved
Replacement totals have fallen from a peak of 2,567 in 2023 to 1,035 in the 2025 count, though the City warns the 2025 capital-works number is provisional. Fewer remaining services means fewer replacements each year, and each remaining one may be harder to reach.
Beyond Toronto
Toronto is one example. Other Canadian cities run their own lead service programs with different cost-sharing rules, and some change targets over time, so always load the municipality's current page before writing about it. Our Ontario page lists provincial regulators, and the local search service explains how we build neighbourhood-level pages that match this kind of street-by-street demand. More verified stories are in the newsroom.
Frequently asked questions
How many lead water services are left in Toronto?
The City estimated about 13,664 City-owned, or public-side, lead water services remained at the end of 2025. That figure covers only the city's side of the connection, not the pipe on private property.
Who replaces the private side of a lead service?
The property owner is responsible for the private portion. Under the City's Priority Lead Water Service Replacement Program, owners who commit to replacing their side can apply to have the City replace its side on a priority basis.
Can a plumbing company advertise lead pipe replacement?
Yes, but keep the claims factual. Explain the work, link the City's program pages, and avoid health claims or scare language. Toronto Public Health advice should be quoted from the City, not paraphrased into a sales line.