Water Crisis and Water

¶ … publicized Water Crisis at Michigan's Flint city, which first emerged in the year 2014. In specific, it will address associated challenges and concepts, a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis of the issue, and solutions and recommendations in order to resolve the issue.

Situated about 70 miles to the north of Michigan's largest city, Detroit, the city of Flint is home to 98,310 inhabitants, of which an alarming 41.6% are classified as economically underprivileged. The United States Census Bureau estimates reveal that the average household income of the city's residents is around 24,679 dollars, while the state average stands at 49,087 dollars. Over half (i.e., 56.6%) of the city's inhabitants belong to the African-American ethnic group. At one time, the city headquartered the biggest General Motors manufacturing unit in America. Flint suffered an economic downturn in the eighties, when the company decided to downsize this expansive industrial unit (Flint Water Crisis Fast Facts - CNN.com). The state government assumed responsibility of the city's finances in the year 2011 following an audit that estimated a deficit of twenty-five million dollars. Despite the city's water supply finances reflecting a deficit of nine million dollars, some of the funds were being utilized by officials to cover general fund deficits. Insolvency came to an end in April of 2015, with deficit clearance using emergency loan, by which the funds apportioned for the city's water were declared solvent. For reducing the deficit in water fund, Flint decided to switch its sources of water in the year 2014. Although the construction of a fresh pipeline that connects the Lake Huron's waters to the city of Flint was underway, city officials decided to use river water as its source in the couple of years of transition. In the past, Flint River waters downstream of the city have been proven to be of bad quality. They were severely degraded in the seventies, because of toxins like lead, fecal coliform, oil, low levels of dissolved oxygen, and plant nutrients being present in the waters. Children's exposure to lead gives rise to the following health impacts: impaired cognition, late puberty, behavioral issues, and hearing issues. Among expectant mothers, lead has been proven to decrease fetal growth. For the general population, consumption of lead impacts nerves, the heart, and the kidneys.

Concepts/Challenges Involved

Among the chief criticisms facing the New Public Management concept is that, as public officials and emergency managers are not bound by regular democratic oversight, answerability will be muddled. Accountability demands are surfacing in the city of Flint, with America holding the governor, the Department of Environmental Quality, and emergency managers as the chief blameworthy parties. New Public Management's most vexing characteristic, with respect to the Flint Water Crisis, is probably the notion that a citizen is a consumer (Flint, Lead and Public Administration's Failure -- It Ain't Necessarily So). Such management perceives the government as flexible and responsive to citizens' requirements and demands as they pay for commodities; hence, the chief executive's actions are crucial to meeting consumer needs and demands of market forces. But, contrary to the above assumption, citizens cannot be likened to consumers, and water is no commodity.

Strengths

Not many strong points may be reported with respect to the water crisis at Flint, Michigan. Weaknesses linked to it, however, are many.

Weaknesses

A financial emergency was declared in Flint in the year 2011, leading to state assumption of the city's budgetary control function. Thus, as verified by state authorities, every decision made in the course of Flint's water crisis wasn't by the city's mayor or council, but by state authorities. Dan Kildee, a Congress member from Michigan, stated when an emergency finance manager was chosen by the governor in the year 2011, the position's responsibility was only to achieve budget reductions, at all costs. According to Kildee, Flint's water crisis suggests an attitude regarding industrial cities like Flint that, during the last three decades, have seen tough times (Ganim and Tran, 2016). He claims they are usually simply forgotten. The federal EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) and Michigan Attorney have been probing into the reason for the state's neglect of federal regulation and its decision to do without the anticorrosive, as argued by the lawsuit. According to Karen Weaver, Mayor of the city, this question is yet to be answered.

Opportunities

No major opportunities may be reported with regard to the water crisis at Flint, Michigan.

Threats

The EPA warns Michigan state authorities and Flint city officials that the city is faced with a number of long-term water supply-related threats, despite short-term efforts to decrease lead concentration in its drinking water. The substandard quality of water supply grew into a city-wide crisis when, following several months of complaints by residents of this predominantly African-American and poverty-ridden city, authorities acknowledged an issue and started seeking corrective measures. Gina Mccarthy, Administrator of EPA, identified no less than five areas which would need further focus and funding for guaranteeing a sustainable, safe potable water supply within an official letter addressed to Rick Snyder, Michigan State's Governor, and Weaver. In this letter, Mccarthy noted that while immediate efforts have generated heartening signs, major long-term issues persist, including a need for additional finances, choosing the city's water source for the long run, and a competent city administration (EPA warns Flint, Michigan of long-term threats to water supply). Furthermore, according to the letter, Flint's water treatment unit suffers a staff shortage, coupled with an oversized distribution system that reduces the efficiency of the chlorine utilized in treating pathogens. The Flint River's waters proved more corrosive compared to that of Detroit's system, resulting in the leaching of more lead from its old pipes. Lead has toxic effects, and child-consumers are particularly at risk. Weaver accepted a number of EPA conclusions, stated that compliance would necessitate extra state funding. She states that new infrastructure and pipelines are required, and the state ought to pay for these.

With regard to ethics, Flint's water crisis teaches us the 'don'ts' of tackling public health issues, particularly those produced (indirectly, at the least) by city authorities' actions. In spite of substantial proof of the existence of an issue, city authorities turned a blind eye to it, delaying corrective action for about 6-9 months, which will probably bring further financial losses to the city, following court-case judgments. Flint's case demonstrates the importance of timely, decisive action, and the amount of trouble likely to ensue if delays are caused (Engineering Ethics Blog: Dereliction of Duty: The Flint Water Crisis). In the event of lawsuits, ascertaining precise facts regarding the issue becomes difficult. A well -known and -established fact, however, is that the municipality failed to conduct routine tests of tap-water in city residences. Independent lead testing in drinking water cannot be expected of citizens, particularly underprivileged ones who make up a large share of the city's inhabitants. The city's water department engineers must have known the potentials issues that would arise when the Flint River's acidic waters combined with old lead pipes. However, despite most of the citizens being aware of the problem, which was proven by independent examinations of the water, the city's finance manager seemed to refuse to accept the fact. Admittedly, insolvency increased complications for a city municipality; however, citizens' safety must be given priority over fiscal considerations. This incident's fallout will haunt the city for years to come.

Governor Snyder organized a task force for investigating the city's water crisis. The unit, after analysis, has compiled a contemptuous report that is 116 pages long, explaining how governmental failure at every level resulted in drinking water contamination in the city, with lead found in high concentration. The document particularly condemns the EPA, stating that the federal body could not have enforced potable water regulations without extensive public outrage in the city. The task force claimed the EPA did not exert its authority properly before January of 2016 and that the federal agency's behavior raises doubts with regard to its readiness to assertively pursue enforcement (when extensive public outrage wasn't apparent) (Bastasch, 2016). The investigative task force further asserted that the agency was authorized to exert power under the Lead and Copper Rule's 40 CFR 141.82(i), or the Safe Drinking Water Act's sections 1414 and 1431. But media reports depict that members of the agency charged with water quality oversight were aware of the lead contamination since April of 2015 at the very least; despite this knowledge, they did not inform the people of Flint of the risk to their health. Moreover, the federal body failed at taking enforcement action against state regulators before January of this year. Republicans from the House, in fact, released an in-house memo of the EPA signed by EPA's Region 5 water division head, Debbie Baltazar, wherein she states that she wasn't certain the agency ought to get into a risky position by supporting and protecting Flint's people, at least, not before acquiring a better grasp of where the funds allocated for water all went. Thus, clearly, EPA authorities were unwilling to fund Flint efforts at resolving its lead contamination issues owing to the city's shady financial history -- as mentioned earlier, the emergency manager appointed by the state switched water suppliers for cutting expenses following the city's dire financial issues that arose because of its substantial public pensions. In spite of this, the task force harshly criticized the Agency for giving way to state regulators and failing to take action before authorities confessed to the application of incorrect chemical treatments. The task force's latest report asserted that the Agency was cautious and slow when it came to insisting on the application of appropriate corrosion control methods. Misinformation by Michigan's Department of Environmental Quality notwithstanding, the EPA's submissiveness to the Department, a state primacy entity, led to delayed implementation of suitable remedial measures and interventions.

Part 2:

Solutions to the Issue

President Obama announced fresh funding of eighty million dollars for helping improve Michigan State's water infrastructure. Further, Congress member, Dan Kildee and Michigan senators, Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow announced the proposal of legislation for providing federal funds worth four-hundred million dollars targeted at resolving Flint's water crisis, in addition to two-hundred million dollars for managing the health problems of lead-exposed adults and kids (Botelho, 2016). No assurance can be provided of this sum of money being 'Okayed' by the Congress. The Senate's No. 2 Ranked Republican, Texas Senator, John Cornyn, doubts the legislation would be passed, stating the crisis at Flint is basically a state and local responsibility. The bill was called by the governor, and the state legislative house had unanimously passed it a day earlier as one step forward in resolving Flint's problem. The governor's office believes the funds will go towards paying for the following:

• Resident testing kits, water filters and bottled water

• The salaries of a total of 9 nurses at the city's public schools, for monitoring the health of students

• Improved student nutrition via school programs, Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), etc.

• Replacement of nursing home, school, and daycare water fixtures

• An independent research for assessing the water infrastructure of the city

• Treatment of kids having elevated lead levels in their bloodstream, which may lead to health issues

• Payment of Flint residents' water bills

In Lansing, the capital of Michigan State, members of 'Local 352' collected approximately a hundred bottled water cases and two-hundred gallon jugs. Further, they raised more than 1,500 dollars in funds by collaborating with a Lansing church. However, this isn't the reason for the group gaining national attention. It is also applying novel lead-to-copper pipe-switching technology, which is a swifter and less disruptive means to make the switch to copper pipes. These workers from Lansing's light and water board have replaced more than 13,000 pipes beginning from the year 2004. Their technique has achieved major success, and even come into media focus. The Rachel Maddow Show's Maddow revealed that while the prior method of pipe replacement necessitated destroying the whole street by digging a huge trench in it, the new technology was more "laparoscopic" and needed the digging of only a couple of fairly small holes in the ground (The IBEW's Innovative Solution to Flint's Water Crisis). Members of Local 352 contributed to pioneering the novel tools and procedure for cutting and removing the old lead cables as well as pushing through new and safe copper pipes as replacement. Further, two homes may be covered in a single day, which is precisely two times as quick as the old technique. These individuals are now moving towards Flint to aid the crisis-stricken city with this new technology. A Lansing utility estimate reports that the project of total replacement of Flint's lead pipes will require approximately fifty-five million dollars and the services of about 130 workers, to complete the project within one years' time.