Michigan and Flint just agreed to replace 18,000 lead-tainted pipes.
Michigan and the city of Flint have agreed to spend the next several years replacing roughly 18,000 aging underground pipes as part of a far-reaching legal settlement over the city’s ongoing crisis involving lead-tainted water.
Under the agreement, the state will agree to pay $87 million for the undertaking and will keep another $10 million in reserve in case more pipes than expected need replacing.
About $30 million of that money will come from the $100 million that Congress approved late last year in aid to Flint.
Rick Snyder (R) on Monday declined to comment, citing a judge’s order limiting public comment on the case until he approves a settlement.
Under the terms of the deal, state officials also must continue to deliver bottled water to housebound residents and must continue to operate free bottled water distribution centers around the city through early September, though it could begin to phase out some sites after May 1 if demand fades.
It has been nearly a year and a half since state officials acknowledged that Flint’s water was tainted with dangerous levels of lead, and more than two years since residents began complaining about problems with the water in the wake of a decision by a state-appointed emergency manager to switch the supply source to the Flint River to save money.
State officials failed to ensure proper corrosion-control treatment of the new water source.
17 key moments in Flint’s water crisis Play Video3:05Live Video Please enable flash to watch this video.
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