The Story:
The State of Michigan is the defendant in lawsuits over its role in the lead poisoning of people in the city of Flint via tainted drinking water, through the period 2014-16. The State appears to have reached a settlement of this litigation that will involve the payment of $600 million to Flint residents.
Significance:
In 2014, Flint changed its water source, switching from Detroit’s system (the city is roughly 70 miles north of Detroit) to a system that draws on the Flint River. This was the decision of a state-appointed emergency manager. Further, the state’s environmental agency advised Flint that it was not necessary to apply corrosion controls to the water, despite the aging lead pipes through which it was arriving. The head of that agency resigned the following year as the scale of the lead contamination, and its health consequences, became known.
In Pill Form:
Under the settlement, the state would establish a $600 million victims’ fund and residents would apply to it for compensation based on the extent of harm. The judge hearing the lawsuits, US District Court Judge Judith Levy, would have to sign off on the deal. It would not affect the continuing cases against other defendants, the US EPA, the city itself, or private consultants.
