In January of 2016, Michigan governor Rick Snyder made an announcement that shocked the country: Flint, Michigan is in a state of emergency. This declaration was only enforced by President Barack Obama declaring a federal state of emergency in Flint, Michigan.
Since 2014, Flint’s water has been contaminated with lead, poisoning thousands of Flint’s citizens. This story has made headlines, not only across the United States, but across the world. But many do not realize the widespread effects that lead poisoning has, or the fact that lead poisoning is all too common. Lead poisoning has even happened all too close to UMBC, in our nation’s capital.
Lead poisoning in Washington, D.C. was first discovered in 2001. Researchers found that lead levels in D.C. water were 83 times that of the “safe” limit. Some even say that the D.C. water crisis was much worse than Flint. Marc Edwards, the main researcher in the studies and testing of D.C. water mentions in an interview with WTOP that there were more people affected, and more lead in the water.
The effects were astounding. Edwards found that there were an elevated number of late-term miscarriages in the D.C. area, and the effect that it had on children is not fully realized. In 2004, the CDC insisted that no children were harmed and misled D.C. residents by doing such. However, in 2010, a House investigative committee found that the CDC, in order to calm the panic surrounding lead in the water, published a report backed by incomplete and misinformed blood tests that grossly underestimated the problem.
Fixing the problem proved an even more difficult task. Replacing pipes was extremely expensive and often lead to an increased amount of lead in the water.
The cause of lead in D.C. drinking water was an addition in the cocktail of chemicals. The new chemical added to the water, chloramine, stripped the pipes of their protective coating, allowing lead to leach into the water supply. But all hope is not lost. In 2004, a new chemical was added to the water: orthophosphate, which transforms the lead in the pipes into an oxide of lead, resistant to leaching.
It took a few years, but the amount of lead in D.C. water has lessened significantly.
However, the same cannot be said for many cities across the United States, according to EPA records. Other states, such as Pennsylvania and Texas, have potentially dangerous levels of lead, particularly, if not exclusively, in urban communities. Though many places in the country are suffering with high levels of lead, Flint is in exceptionally bad situation.
As we've seen, lead contamination clean up can be a difficult task. Flint’s problems are far from over, but the most we can do is help. You can donate, stay informed, and/or contact the Michigan State Government.
Washington Post on CDC’s mishandling of D.C. water crisis
USA Today's in depth national lead poisoning map
Washington Post on lead poisoning across the country
Huffington Post on ways YOU can help
