The draft amicable agreement has yet to be ratified by a judge, but it is already a tremendous step forward in the civil aspect of the settlement of one of the worst contemporary health scandals in the United States.
Thursday, August 20, the State of Michigan announced that it would pay $ 600 million in damages to settle the scandal of the lead contamination of the drinking water system of the city of Flint.
Between April 2014 and October 2015, following a change in the mode of water supply aimed at saving money, tens of thousands of inhabitants of this city of 100,000 souls – located an hour’s drive north of Detroit, which is 57% African-American and 41% of the population live below the poverty line – were exposed to astronomical amounts of lead supersaturating the water they drank or used for their domestic needs.
Negotiated for more than eighteen months, between the victims’ lawyers – whose complaints have been grouped for convenience – and the teams of the Federal Democratic Attorney of Michigan, Dana Nessel, and the also Democratic Governor of the State , Gretchen Whitmer, the agreement is, according to the latter, “A step towards repairing a disaster which has changed life in the city”.
“It will take time for Flint to heal his wounds (…) What happened (…) should never have happened, and the financial compensation (…) is just one of the many ways we can continue to show our support for the town of Flint and its families ”said Mme Whitmer, Thursday, saying to himself “Deeply sorry for the uncertainty and the turmoil” generated by this crisis.
Notoriously acidic and polluted water
Said crisis is the result of a decision by his predecessor, Rick Snyder, Republican Governor of Michigan from 2011 to 2019. In April 2014, while Flint was placed under state surveillance because of his dire economic and financial situation , the Snyder administration decided to remedy this by making clear cuts.
For example, the notoriously acidic and polluted water from the Flint River, which runs through the city, replaced, in the taps, the pure water from the nearby Lake Huron used until then. And, despite recommendations from experts at the Michigan Department of the Environment, the river water has not received the chemical corrosion inhibitor treatment essential for its distribution to the public.
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