The Flint Water Crisis

Water contamination has affected many places in the United States. In 2014, the Flint Water Crisis begun. Darnell Earley, the Emergency Manager of Flint, Michigan, decided to switch the city of Flint’s water source from Lake Huron, to the Flint River, which had been previously known to be contaminated (“Emergency in Flint”). This verdict was made in an effort to save five million dollars in two years. Because the Flint River is extremely corrosive, officials were supposed to add a chemical to the water, in order to keep it from destroying Flint’s lead pipes. Although this chemical would cost 100 dollars per day, officials did not do it, causing lead to contaminate the water (“Emergency in Flint”). Along with Flint, Washington D.C. experienced …show more content…
This law, focuses on water intended for drinking use. The SDWA makes sure that the EPA forms minimum standards in which public water systems must meet (“Summary of the Safe Drinking Water Act”). This is to protect humans from natural, and man-made contaminants. The SDWA has been helpful for many citizens. During the Flint Water Crisis, the EPA published an order, making sure that Michigan was abiding by the rules of the SDWA. Also, a federal lawsuit was filed against Detroit for violating the SDWA (“Flint Water Crisis Fast Facts”). This act has proven to be helpful for many citizens suffering from contaminated water …show more content…
The purpose of the EPA is to make sure that laws involving humans and the environment are both lawful and beneficial, that the United States cares, and puts forth effort to help humans and the environment, that Americans have correct information regarding humans and the environment, and that the United States works with other countries to keep the worldwide environment safe (“Our Mission and What We Do”). To achieve these goals, the EPA does many things. They set regulations for environmental laws, give grants to environmental organizations, non-profits, and educational institutions, research the environment, sponsor partnerships, educate Americans, and publish information (“Our Mission and What We Do”). During the Flint Water Crisis, the EPA publicized facts about Flint’s water quality. This was useful to many citizens to understand how corrosive their water really was. Although the EPA did this for Flint residents, many felt that publishing information was inadequate. Flint citizens thought the EPA failed to provide proper care (“Flint Water Crisis Fast Facts”). The EPA did not do enough for the people of Flint because they just presented facts, instead of engaging in possible solutions that would help them

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