Flint water system improving, but still unstable: agency
Source: Reuters
World | Fri Apr 8, 2016 11:07am EDT
Flint water system improving, but still unstable: agency
The drinking water in Flint, Michigan, where high lead levels led to a health crisis that drew national attention, is improving, but remains unstable, a top environmental official said Friday.
"The drinking water system is recovering," Robert Kaplan, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's acting administrator for the region that includes Flint, told local and state officials meeting in the city to discuss the crisis.
"You've got a dramatic decrease in the soluble lead. What we're seeing though is particulate lead, which indicates that the system is unstable," he told the meeting by phone.
Under the direction of a state-appointed emergency manager, Flint switched water supplies to the Flint River from Detroit's system in 2014 to save money. The state has been criticized for its initial poor handling of the issue.
The corrosive river water leached lead, a toxic substance that can damage the nervous system, from the city's water pipes. Flint switched back to the Detroit system last October.
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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-michigan-water-idUSKCN0X51U5