Flint crisis raises concerns over New Orleans’ water

The bill also requires federal action if a state refuses to warn the public about unsafe water and authorizes $20 million a year to monitor lead exposure in Flint.

The filters are rated to handle 150 parts per billion.

“It is essential that all Flint residents have the water in their homes tested as soon as possible”, said Governor Rick Snyder.

With the media concentrating on the events in Flint, Michigan residents have turned their concerns about lead to their own communities, many of which have active lead programs, including the city of Grand Rapids.

It wasn’t until September, after Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha – a pediatrician at Flint’s Hurley Medical Center – and others raised alarms, that officials began to acknowledge that not only was there iron in the city’s tap water, but also alarming amounts of lead.

Snyder said at the beginning of Thursday’s meeting it’s important for officials to engage with residents as much as possible.

Marc Edwards, the Virginia Tech expert who had a critical role in uncovering the lead problem a year ago, said he’s not surprised by the high readings. Apparently, it would take over $767 million to replace the city’s water system and that doesn’t even get at the problem of helping the children already suffering from the lead-ridden water.

“The Flint water situation is an extremely unique circumstance”.

On Friday, Snyder signed a bill providing $28 million in state aid to address the water crisis.

But while they and those whose job it is to keep the waterways that make up the city’s water supply-the Schuylkill and Delaware Rivers-clean do their best, water pollution threats that they can’t control are always on the horizon, according to environmental activists.

Snyder says he’s focused on resolving Flint’s crisis with lead-tainted drinking water, despite vocal critics saying his administration disregarded warning signs and didn’t act quickly enough.

The 26 samples from unfiltered water collected since late December from around the city ranged between 153 parts per billion and more than 4,000 parts per billion.

Emails obtained by the advocacy group Progress Michigan reveal state officials acknowledging concerns about the water quality while brushing off residents’ uneasiness.

The Michigan Legislature has unanimously approved $28 million in additional funding to address the lead contamination of Flint’s water.

The Flint, Michigan toxic water story is a horrifying lesson in the damage that can be done when public officials lie to their constituents.

“We don’t walk away if something doesn’t go right”. He’s someone that we have been working with since he came to town. Are there other communities facing similar problems?, he asked. Gary Peters said at a news conference at the Capitol.

Nicole Lurie, assistant secretary for preparedness and response for the Department of Health and Human Services, spent time this week in Flint surveying the response efforts on the ground.