EPA head blames Michigan officials for Flint water debacle
Source: Washington Post
The head of the Environmental Protection Agency placed blame for the Flint water crisis squarely on the state of Michigan Thursday, saying a state-appointed emergency manager made the decision that led to the contamination and that the state bureaucracy approved it.
“The crisis we’re seeing was the result of a state-appointed emergency manager deciding that the city would stop purchasing treated drinking water and instead switch to an untreated source to save money,” EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy told the House Oversight and Government Reform committee as its hearing opened. “The state of Michigan approved that decision.”
McCarthy acknowledged that “in hindsight, we should not have been so trusting of the state for so long” when it assured EPA that action was taken to prevent lead from leaching into drinking water. The state’s environmental quality department admitted in October that it had not ensured that corrosion control chemicals were added to the water as they should have been.
“We missed the opportunity late last summer to quickly get EPA’s concerns on the public’s radar screen. That I regret,” she said.
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Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/michigan-governor-to-blame-state-environmental-agency-for-flint-water-debacle/2016/03/16/ded09d3a-ebbe-11e5-b0fd-073d5930a7b7_story.html
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snyder should be drummed out of office...
