As you described it, you are currently living in Flint, Michigan which has been dealing with a water crisis for the past four years. Flint, which once thrived as being the home of the nation’s largest General Motors (GM) plant, began having economic issues once GM downsized. As a result, Michigan took over Flint’s finances. In order to reduce a shortfall in the water fund, the city decided a new pipeline would be built to deliver water from Lake Huron to Flint. In 2014, the city turned to the Flint River while construction was underway which began the four- year water crisis due to the look, smell, and taste of the water coming from the Flint River.
In 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) discovered that there were dangerous levels of lead in the water in residents’ home and that the lead consumption can affect the heart, kidney, and nerves in adults. In children the consumption of the lead can lead to behavioral disorders, delayed puberty, hearing problem as well as other issues. The state failed to treat the water with an anti-corrosive agent, against federal law, which has resulted in the water eroding the iron water mains and turning the water brown. In addition to the iron, half of the service lines to the homes in Flint are made of lead and because the state failed to treat the water lead has begun to spread into the water supply.
The state and local governments have had an active hand in causing the problem and now trying to fix the problem. The state treasurer authorized the switch to the Flint River water to reduce costs. The city announced that there were bacteria found in the water supply and that residents should begin boiling their water as an advisory and increased the amount of chlorine in the water to flush the system. They then lifted the advisory only to issue another boil water advisory after another test showed the water was positive for bacteria that could produce E.coli and other disease-causing organisms. The city then again added more chlorine to the water to flush the pipes and lifted the advisory. The city warned the residents that the water contained byproducts of disinfectants that may cause health issues such as the increased risk for cancer and that the elderly and parents with young children should consult with doctors because consumption.
In 2015, DWSD offered to reconnect the city with Lake Huron and offered to waive the $4million fee to restore the service because there were so many issues with Flint Lake and city officials declined the offer. There were reports of TTHM which is a cancer-causing byproduct that is found in chlorine which Governor Snyder stated was not an immediate health emergency. After more research, EPA notified the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality that were dangerous amounts of lead in the water. Flint City Council members voted to stop using the river and reconnect with Lake Huron but Jerry Ambrose, state- appointed emergency manager, overruled the vote because costs would increase significantly and the stated that “the water in Detroit if no safer than the water from Flint.” The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services began testing school drinking water after finding that Flint water was 19 times more corrosive than Detroit water and began distributing free water filters. After finding that three Flint schools had dangerous lead levels in the water, Governor Snyder stated the city will discontinue using the Flint River water. The city switched back to Detroit water and the EPA established a task force and Flint declared a state of emergency. The National Guard came in to help distribute bottled water.
Governor Snyder reached out to President Obama to get help with installing lead free piped throughout the city. The president declined and instead authorized $5 million in aid and declared a state of emergency so that FEMA could step in and assist. Governor Snyder recently announced that the state would no longer provide free bottled water, however free water filters will still be provided. However, the residents do not believe the water is safe.
LEGAL ANALYSIS
Since 2015, residents of Flint have been filing class action suits against city officials including Governor Snyder for knowingly exposing Flint residents to toxic water. In March 2018 the Supreme Court gave the okay for two class-action lawsuits that have been filed by residents of Flint who are in pursuit of civil rights claims against state and local officials over the lead contamination in their water supply. Both lawsuits were originally thrown out by lower courts. The Safe Drinking Water Act has provisions for people who wish to file suit over unsafe water such as not being able to seek monetary damages. The Supreme Court decided that the residents were not precluded by the statute and could seek monetary damages under the civil rights law.
A. Class Action Suits
Melissa Mays and other Flint parents sued Governor Snyder, and 14 other city officials in November 2015 on behalf of themselves and their children. Governor Snyder, Daniel Wyant, Liane Smith, Adam Rosenthal, Stephen Busch, Patrice Cook, Michael Prysby and Bradly Wurfel were sued in their individual capacities; Darnell Earley, Gerald Ambrose, Dayne Walling, Howard Croft, Michael Glasgow and Daughtery Johnson were sued in both their individual and official capacities; and the city of Flint was also listed. The class is suing for violation of their 14th Amendment rights of “life, liberty, and property without due process of law” when the city replaced safe drinking water with water that they know would be highly toxic solely for fiscal purposes.
April 2016, five hundred and fourteen residents and former residents of Flint filed a class action lawsuit against the EPA. They are alleging negligence and are demanding more $220 million in damages for the EPA’s role in the Flint water crisis. The EPA was met with complaints about the water in which they responded that the poor water quality was only temporary and that it was being worked on. In June 2017 six current and former state and city officials were charged criminally, five were accused of involuntary manslaughter for their roles in the water crisis which lead to a Legionnaires’ disease outbreak resulting in 12 deaths.
In March 2016 there was a lawsuit filed by residents who feared getting cancer in the near future as a result of drinking the contaminated water. The residents are claiming that there is reasonable certainty that they will develop cancer in the future due to the high intake of lead from the water. The plaintiffs are suing the state and state officials for their negligence and are asking for their medical bills and upcoming medical check-ups be compensated. The argument is that Governor Snyder and other officials violated the Safe Drinking Water Act because they failed to notify residence of the dangers of the toxic water. Even after testing the government failed to notify residents of the water sample’s lab results within thirty days.