The situation is fairly straight-forward: much of the water distribution system is ancient, dating back to the 1920s. Lots of cast-iron and even some lead pipe. This hasn't been a problem with the water supplied by Detroit, because Detroit treats water for corrosion control and Lake Huron water isn't particularly corrosive to begin with. Over the years, the old pipes have become coated with a layer of minerals that protects the water from metals leaching into it. When Flint switched from Detroit water, they did not add any phosphate to the water for corrosion control, and Flint River water is highly corrosive to boot. The corrosive water stripped away the protective coating in the pipes and started corroding the pipes themselves. This caused lead to enter the water at older homes that have lead in their water lines and plumbing.
For a long time, everybody was in denial about the problem. This even though residents immediately complained about the color and taste of their water after it was switched to the Flint River. Now everybody is pointing their fingers at everyone else. Both the Flint water department and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality SHOULD have understood the importance of proper corrosion control treatment. Yet the water department did not treat the water with phosphate, and MDEQ sat on its hands and let the water department get away with it. And it's quite possible the state-appointed financial manager would have vetoed spending money on corrosion-control treatment had the water department requested it, although I've seen nothing that indicates the matter ever came up. Governor Snyder, for his part, has taken a "the buck stops here" approach and apologized for the state's role in this fiasco.
Note that the original plan to switch Flint's water to the Flint River seemed like a "no-brainer". It saved the city a million bucks a month! And it was only supposed to be temporary until Flint could tie into a new regional water district in a year or two. Moral of the story: Sometimes the "obviously better" choice is actually the worst possible choice. Almost any well-intended action has unintended consequences.
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Today's Featured Article - Good As New - by Bill Goodwin. In the summer of 1995, my father, Russ Goodwin, and I acquired the 1945 Farmall B that my grandfather used as an overseer on a farm in Waynesboro, Georgia. After my grandfather’s death in 1955, J.P. Rollins, son of the landowner, used the tractor. In the winter 1985, while in his possession the engine block cracked and was unrepairable. He had told my father
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