On April 25, 2014 officials from Flint, Michigan switched the city’s water supply to the Flint River as a cost-cutting measure for the struggling city. In doing so, they unwittingly introduced lead-poisoned water into homes, in what would become a massive public-health crisis.
The problem started when officials decided to switch the water supply from the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department to the Karegnondi Water Authority to save money for the economically struggling city. Before that connection could be built, the city turned to the Flint River as a temporary water source. By May, residents were complaining that the brown water flowing into their homes looked and smelled weird, but the largely majority-African American and poor citizens went ignored by officials. In August, E.coli and coliform bacteria were detected in Flint’s water.
From there, a leaked memo from the Environmental Protection Agency, and several independent studies, warned of dangerous levels of lead in the water. Although the city switched their water supply back in October 2015, the damage to the pipes had already been done. After months of denial and dodging, the mayor, governor and president declared a state of emergency in Flint. Free water bottles and filters were provided to residents to help them cope.
Unfortunately, the crisis didn’t end there for Flint residents. Over a year later, people were still using bottled water to cook, drink and even brush their teeth. The city’s recovery has been slow, as it works to replace 30,000 lead pipes. In 2017, reports showed that the water in most homes was generally safe, but many residents still don’t trust what comes out of their tap.
In the aftermath, residents filed a class-action lawsuit, and 15 state and city leaders faced criminal charges.
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The Flint, Michigan “water crisis” was a result of city and county officials “jumping the gun” while planning to disconnect from the Detroit water system in order to utilize their (presently unfinished) Karegnondi regional system. Since their regional system, providing water from Lake Huron, was not completed, city and county officials decided to provide water to Flint residents from the Flint river. Anyone who lives in Michigan knows that the Flint river was heavily polluted in the past, from industrial processes. Although since cleaned up, toxins are still leaching out of the Flint river.
Lead was leaching from the present piping infrastructure as the city chose not to spend $50.00 per day for anti-leaching chemicals. Once again, this was a city officials’ decision.
Michigan’s governor and state officials had nothing to do with the decision to use water from the Flint river. It was city and county officials that made the decision.
Flint has since reconnected to the Detroit water system.
Of course, politics figures into this as the Democrat city and county officials do not want to take blame for their own shortsightedness and stupidity.
Note that Detroit has some of the best water in the country.