LEAD Poisoning In Flint Michigan
By: Veronica D'Amico
What Actually Happened
Local officials made the decision to switch the city’s water supply in 2014 from its longtime source supplied by the city of Detroit, which contained corrosion-control chemicals, to the Flint River, which did not contain those chemicals. It was billed as a cost-saving measure for a city facing financial distress. But the Flint River water corroded the city’s pipes and leached poisonous metals into the city’s water supply, including lead, which is particularly dangerous if consumed by children or pregnant women. Some of the water tested so high for lead contamination that it was more than twice the amount at which the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency classifies water as hazardous waste.The residents of Flint consumed this poisonous water, knowing that something was wrong because of its changing colors and smells, but mostly unaware of just how dangerous it was.
Brad Wurfel
Residents of Flint, Mich., protest Gov. Rick Snyder’s
Governor Rick Snyder
Governor Rick Snyder
“It’s clearly a negative on what we’ve accomplished since I’ve been governor” He said knew last summer about his top aide’s concerns that Flint residents were "getting blown off" by the Michigan’s Department of Environmental Quality. Rick says he wants to solve it and not walk away from the problem. MDEQ’s director and chief spokesman were forced to reign.
Brad Wurfel
CITATIONS
Charles. "The Poisoning of Flint’s Water." The New York Times. The New York Times, 20 Jan. 2016. Web. 01 Feb. 2016.
Emily Lawler |. "DEQ Spokesman Also Resigns over Flint Water Crisis, Says City 'didn't Feel like We Cared'" DEQ Spokesman Also Resigns over Flint Water Crisis, Says City 'didn't Feel like We Cared' Emily Lawler, 30 Dec. 2015. Web. 01 Feb. 2016.
Fournier, Ron. "Snyder Concedes Flint Is His." National Journal. N.p., 18 Jan. 2016. Web. 01 Feb. 2016.