The City is again seeking 100 qualified homeowners and 10 non-residential property owners interested in participating in its regular volunteer lead-testing program. Under this regulation, introduced in 2007, the Ministry of the Environment requires the City to test the water in Kingston homes and businesses identified as receiving their water through lead or lead-soldered pipes on their own property every six months. Homes to be tested will be chosen at random from the pool of volunteer participants who are located in an area likely to have homes built with lead pipes - those with houses that were built before 1950 or homes built prior to 1990 with non-lead service pipes, but having plumbing with suspected lead solder. Utilities Kingston will conduct its tests at selected homes and will inform the homeowner of the test results within a week of receiving them from the lab. Homeowners who volunteered in the past may also be contacted for follow-up testing. Those interested in participating in the testing can contact the Utilities Kingston Customer Service Centre at 613-546-0000. To complete the test, a Utilities Kingston certified operator will take three one-litre samples of water from a faucet that has been flushed for five minutes and then left to stand for 30 minutes. Homeowners should ask for identification before allowing anyone into their homes to test the water. Residents not selected for testing, but who find they have lead pipes and wish to test their water, can call Utilities Kingston for the name of a certified laboratory.