US regulators say MI officials ignored federal advice to treat Flint water for corrosion-causing elements a year ago and delayed for months before telling the public about the health risks.
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Croft sent the e-mail to several local and state officials, including then-Flint Mayor Dayne Walling and Mike Prysby, a district engineer in the drinking water section of the DEQ.
In January, Obama allocated $80 million to MI in water infrastructure and water treatment loans. “It was determined that having more data was advisable prior to the commitment of a specific optimization method”.
With the president’s support and the national exposure, we’re hoping this whole ordeal will soon be over and residents can safely drink city water again. Residents of the predominantly poor and black city of 100,000 have been using bottled water ever since.
“That’s a significant investment in the people of Flint”, Murray said. CBS News’ Paula Reid has details from federal offici…
MI is one of just two states with a blanket exemption for the governor’s office to the Freedom of Information Act.
The decision to switch to the Flint River, planned as a temporary cost-cutting move while awaiting completion of the new Karegnondi Water Authority pipeline to Lake Huron, was made while the City of Flint was under the control of a state-appointed emergency manager.
Pipe replacements could be starting as early as this month.
Lead is a toxic metal that was used for many years in products found in and around homes and may cause health effects such as behavioral problems and learning disabilities, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Natasha Henderson told city council members that the proposal passed last week by the state Senate would only keep Flint’s water fund financially solvent until year’s end.
Replacing Flint’s entire water distribution network, if necessary, could cost $712.8 million and take up to 15 years to complete, according to emails Snyder released last month.
Weaver says this $55 million “fast start” plan to start digging up lead pipes is a fluid one.
A spokesman for Snyder, who has apologized for his administration’s role in the disaster and an inadequate initial response, said $25 million of the funding designated for Flint would help replace an unspecified number of old lead lines running from city streets to houses. “That’s the only way this community is going to be confident and people will stay here and people will come”, said Mayor Weaver.
The team is investigating to determine if there was criminal misconduct in connection to the contamination of Flint’s water. State officials say the EPA shares blame for not expressing sufficient urgency.
As more water advisories were given telling residents to boil their tap water, different reasons were cited.
Snyder, a former accountant who has been keen to fatten the state’s savings account, called for shifting $165 million he had planned for the rainy day fund to a new Michigan Infrastructure Fund. A commission he announced in his recent State of the State address would recommend how to prioritize the money.
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In an August 31 email obtained by the AP, city utilities administrator Mike Glasgow told Croft that the DEQ had only recently advised adding phosphate as a corrosion inhibitor.
