Water Crisis in Flint, Michigan Essay

Open, View, and/or
Download this Document

Total Length: 1802 words ( 6 double-spaced pages)

Total Sources: 6

Page 1 of 6

The Water Crisis in Flint, Michigan

The water crisis at Flint resulted from a series of poor decisions by city officials dating back to the 1960s. In 1967, the City of Flint switched from the Flint River to the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department (DWSD) as the primary source of drinking water (Masten, Davies & Mcelmurry, 2016). The switch was geared at ensuring sufficient water quantities for the city’s growing population (Masten et al., 2016). The decision, however, opened up the Flint River to unregulated discharges from municipalities and industries as well as continued failure by officials to properly treat the water (Masten et al., 2016). After 1967, for instance, the Flint Water Service Center only treated the Flint River water two to four times a year; yet the agency had permitted the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System to discharge treated water back into the river (Masten et al., 2016). Worryingly, city officials ignored all these elements in 2014 when, in a bid to save money, they switched back to the Flint River from the DWSD, allowing lead-contaminated water to flow through aging pipes into hundreds of residents’ homes (Masten et al., 2016).

Stuck Writing Your "Water Crisis in Flint, Michigan" Essay?

View All Our Example Water Crisis in Flint, Michigan Essay

Have A Custom Example Essay Written

Soon after the switch, residents began to complain of smelly, foul-tasting and dark-colored water (Masten et al., 2016). Several independent tests found lead levels in water sampled from residents’ homes to be way higher than the 15 parts per billion levels set by the Environmental Protection Agency (Ruckart et al., 2019).

The Affected Population

It is estimated that close to 140,000 Flint residents were exposed to drinking water contaminated with lead and other harmful agents (Ruckart et al., 2019). Children are particularly at risk of adverse outcomes with lead exposure. Studies have associated lead exposure in childhood, even in very low levels, with speech and hearing problems, behavior and learning problems, slowed growth and development, skin rash, and damage to the nervous system and brain (Ruckart et al., 2019). In adults, lead exposure is associated with a high risk for high blood pressure, as well as kidney, heart, and legionnaires disease (Ruckart et al., 2019)......

Show More ⇣

     Open the full completed essay and source list


OR

     Order a one-of-a-kind custom essay on this topic


sample essay writing service

Cite This Resource:

Latest APA Format (6th edition)

Copy Reference
"Water Crisis In Flint Michigan" (2020, July 31) Retrieved May 2, 2024, from
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/water-crisis-flint-michigan-2175535

Latest MLA Format (8th edition)

Copy Reference
"Water Crisis In Flint Michigan" 31 July 2020. Web.2 May. 2024. <
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/water-crisis-flint-michigan-2175535>

Latest Chicago Format (16th edition)

Copy Reference
"Water Crisis In Flint Michigan", 31 July 2020, Accessed.2 May. 2024,
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/water-crisis-flint-michigan-2175535
   

Open, View, and/or
Download this Document
order custom essay example