Sean murphy

Feb. 1 2017
Period 3
8.1: What caused the Flint water crisis?
8.2: What are the health consequences and what is being done to address them?
The Flint Water Crisis

Did you know that The river water [in Flint] was found to be 19 times more corrosive than
water from Detroit, which was from Lake Huron, (Stated Virginia Tech). The river water was so
corrosive that it made Lead seep into the water.
Lead seepage into the drinking water in Flint, Mich., has caused a massive public health crisis
and prompted President Obama to declare a federal state of emergency there. The problem began
when the city switched its water supply in 2014 (Kennedy). The Flint water crisis was caused by
ignorance and the choice not to use any corrosion inhibitors, which caused many health
problems.

The Flint water crisis was caused by things like poor maintenance of the water pipes and caused
many problems. First the water in Flint has been in terrible condition. a test done by Virginia
Tech shows that Flint water is almost three times what is considered hazardous waste. Also
Historically, the water in the Flint River downstream of Flint has been of poor quality, and was
severely degraded during the 1970s, due to "the presence of fecal coliform bacteria, low
dissolved oxygen, plant nutrients, oils, and toxic substances." In 2001, the state ordered the
monitoring and cleanup of 134 polluted sites within the Flint River watershed, including
industrial complexes, landfills and farms laden with pesticides and fertilizer(). Second they did
not treat the water with any corrosion inhibitors. a class-action lawsuit stated that the state
Department of Environmental Quality was not treating the water with any anti-corrosive agents,
which is illegal, (CNN.) CNN stated that by not adding a corrosion inhibitor, Flint was going to
save about $140 per day. But the inestimable costs of the errors made in Flint will reverberate
through the community for a long time and their magnitude will dwarf the original planned
savings. Because Flint decided to not use corrosion inhibitors caused lead to seep into the water.
After tests Virginia tech concludes that tap water from a home in Flint had ppb levels of up to
13,200. This is bad because the EPA considers ppb of 5,000 as hazardous waste. Virginia Tech
also issued a report indicating 40% of Flint homes have elevated lead levels. Because of Flints
poor maintenance water corroded the lead pipes and poisoned Flint.

The Flint water crisis also caused many health issues like elevated lead levels and other diseases.
Some health problems could be hearing problems and delayed puberty. In pregnant women, lead
is associated with reduced fetal growth. In everyone, lead consumption can affect the heart,
kidneys and nerves. Although there are medications that may reduce the amount of lead in the
blood, treatments for the adverse health effects of lead have yet to be developed(CNN). Also
even Flint issues a warning that byproducts in the water may cause cancer and other diesis over
time. But Flint did try to help there citezens. Federal funds were used to cover the cost of providing
water and water filters(NPR). Their a ction plan includes providing professional support for children
under 6 with elevated lead levels, replacing water fixtures in public facilities, replacing the city's 8,000
lead service lines, and increasing resources for schools. After Flint admitted that there were
impurities in the water They still did very little to help the people. After acknowledging that The
water had lead they just rinsed the system with chlorine. The chlorine then bonded with organic
matter and produced more carcinogens (cancer causers). The Flint crisis did cause many health
issuses but atleast some of they officials tried to help.

The Flint water crisis caused many health problems and was easily avoidable. Flints water was
already very corrosive but much of this could have been avoided if Flints goverghnment planned
ahead instead of trying to save money.