Benjamin Franklin The Necessity Of Water Best - 1576 Words

Benjamin Franklin described the necessity of water best, â€Å"When the well s dry, we know the worth of water.† The city of Flint, Michigan has realized, the hard way, just how important clean water is with their recent water crisis. Flint, Michigan is the seventh largest metropolitan area and is home to nearly a hundred thousand people. Like most towns in Michigan, Flint’s economy was mostly fueled by the automobile industry until General Motors began closing shops in 1980, since then the city has since been ravaged by high crime and poverty. As if that was not bad enough, they have now been hit with a devastating water crisis, involving lead contaminated water. While there have been other instances like Flint’s before, none have come close†¦show more content†¦However the pipeline was not expected to be completed until, at its earliest, 2015, which left the gap between when Flint’s contract with Detroit ran out and the new pipeline was installe d. Earley decided not to negotiate a short-term deal and chose to switch to the Flint River instead. The shift was put into effect in April of 2014 and, immediately following, many residents complained about the water’s odor, taste, color and its negative health effects, including vomiting, hair loss, and rashes. City officials and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, however, continued to stress the fact that the water was drinkable and that everything was under control. It was far from under control. By September 2015, after many advocacy groups began monitoring the water quality, did the city start issuing a drinking-water-supply advisory but did not begin to change the system back until in October, after Virginia Tech professor Marc Edward’s tested water samples â€Å"and found levels of lead far above the Environmental Protection Agency’s recommendations† (Mendoza, Par. 9). Karen Weaver, the City’s newly elected Mayor, declared a State of Emergence on December 15 and urged the Governor to follow suit but Governor Snyder waited until January 6, to declare the State of Emergency. Police then began going