Email: Bacteria worries influenced Flint corrosion decision

“The Lansing BWL pioneered lead pipe removal techniques that can be used to efficiently to remove lead service lines quickly and at a lower cost than traditional methods”, said Weaver.

Why corrosion controls were not added has been one of the great mysteries of the crisis that has resulted in state and federal emergency declarations and the use of the Michigan National Guard to help distribute bottled water and filters to take the lead out of tap water. The plan would target homes but not schools, businesses or other nonresidential sites.

Households where residents are deemed to be high-risk would be given priority for pipe replacement.

Staff from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality are working with the city and consulting engineers on a project plan for Flint to submit for financing, said Melanie Brown, a spokeswoman for the state DEQ. A spokesman for Gov. Rick Snyder, who was scheduled to announce a budget on Wednesday expected to include Flint initiatives, said in a statement that state officials were looking at the mayor’s plan. It was determined, the water was responsible for corrosion issues in the city’s lead pipes, and residents were drinking and using lead-contaminated water.

Flint’s water troubles, concerns about other aging water infrastructure and the Detroit school’s district dire financial outlook – it needs a $720 million infusion of cash over a decade to avoid bankruptcy, according to Snyder aides – overshadowed a one-time budget surplus and more nuts-and-bolts budget details this year, such as funding for education, municipalities and workforce development.

“For many members of the Senate Republican Caucus, the crisis in Flint has generated questions about statewide infrastructure needs and the Majority Leader is interested in exploring options for Flint and all communities in MI to ensure the most basic services are reliable and safe”. However, the untreated river caused lead to leach from old pipes and greatly contaminated Flint’s water supply, leaving it with a distinct yellow-brown coloration.

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. The Lansing Board of Water & Light would provide Flint officials with technical advice on how to unearth and replace the city’s sprawling 550-mile-long network of iron pipes containing toxic lead that has tainted the water supply. The best way to give the city of Flint hope according to Weaver, is to be proactive and ditch the wait and see approach. She spoke after an informational hearing Wednesday on Flint led by Democratic lawmakers.

“I invite Governor Snyder and his team to pledge their full cooperation to help us get this done”, Weaver said. “If not, shame on him”, Weaver said.

“She’s constantly on edge”, Waid said of his daughter.

Separately, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette and his office’s investigators plan to offer an update Tuesday on their probe into the crisis and the state’s response. “We’ll let the investigations determine who’s to blame for Flint’s water crisis, but I’m focused on solving it”, Weaver said. Doctors told the family to get rid of lead in their home, and Waid didn’t suspect the water at first, since it had been tested when he bought the house.