5/8/2023 0 Comments Flint michigan water crisisMaGenesee County announces a new pipeline is being designed to deliver water from Lake Huron to Flint. The range of remedies sought included monetary compensation for lead poisoning and refunds for water bills. Overall, more than a dozen lawsuits, including several additional class-action suits, were filed against Michigan and the city of Flint, as well as various state and city officials and employees involved in the decision to switch the source of the drinking water and those responsible for monitoring water quality. Additionally, about half of the service lines to homes in Flint are made of lead and because the water wasn’t properly treated, lead began leaching into the water supply, in addition to the iron. As a result, the water was eroding the iron water mains, turning the water brown. Health effects of lead exposure in children include impaired cognition, behavioral disorders, hearing problems and delayed puberty.Ī class-action lawsuit charged that the state wasn’t treating the water with an anti-corrosive agent, in violation of federal law. Lead consumption can affect the heart, kidneys and nerves. Tests in 2015 by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Virginia Tech indicated dangerous levels of lead in the water at residents’ homes. Soon after the switch, residents reported changes to the water’s color, smell and taste. In 2014, while the pipeline was under construction, the city turned to the Flint River as a water source. In order to reduce the water fund shortfall, the city announced that a new pipeline would be built to deliver water from Lake Huron to Flint. In 2011, the state of Michigan took over Flint’s finances after an audit projected a $25 million deficit. The city’s economic decline began during the 1980s, when GM downsized. Here is a look at the water crisis in Flint, Michigan, where cost-cutting measures led to tainted drinking water that contained lead and other toxins.įlint once thrived as the home of the nation’s largest General Motors plant.
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