At the time, Flint was under the authority of an emergency manager appointed by the state of Michigan, Reuters notes.
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“The reason we responded the way we did is in an effort to address the concerns of Flint residents, and we’re working with the EPA”, Balaya said. A local hospital discovered that the percentage of Flint children with elevated lead levels almost doubled after the switch, reported WDIV. “We want to offer this opportunity for dialogue and bidirectional learning so that the “experts” can learn from the perspectives of the community impacted by this crisis”, said Dr. Suzanne Selig, director of UM Flint’s Department of Public Health and Health Sciences, which is sponsoring the course.
Federal prosecutors also said Tuesday they’re working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on an investigation into problems with lead in Flint’s water supply.
People in Flint were exposed to high lead levels in their drinking water after the city started getting tap water from its namesake river in 2014.
“We will cooperate fully with any requests from the U.S. Attorney’s Office as it looks into Flint’s water challenges”, Biehl said, noting that the Snyder-appointed task force is still reviewing the water crisis.
The health effects listed in the class action lawsuit include: skin lesions, hair loss, high levels of lead in the blood, vision loss, memory loss, depression, and anxiety. By requesting a governor’s declaration, the county has determined local resources are insufficient to address the situation and state assistance is required to protect public health, safety and property to lessen or avert the threat of a crisis.
Resignations at the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, including that of director Dan Wyant, followed reports of mistakes by the agency overseeing Flint’s water quality.
In a release, the state says that by declaring a state of emergency, Snyder has made available all state resources in cooperation with local response and recovery operations. That was intended as a temporary step while a pipeline was built from Lake Huron.
The situation could affect the city for many years.
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Flint returned to Detroit’s system in October. Later, state officials agreed to work with Flint to return the city to Detroit water.
