A Boost To Provide Clean Water, But Is It Enough?
To fix the water crisis in Flint, Michigan, it's been estimated that it could cost anywhere between $55 million to $216 million or more.
Other regions in the U.S. are also facing similar issues. California, Oregon, and Vermont for example, have all been found to have water samples with high levels of lead that exceeded federal limits.
Flint's mayor, K. Weaver, previously estimated that it would take tens of millions of dollars to complete the project of replacing the pipes in that city alone, it would also take them almost a decade to get the job done.
Awhile back, Elon Musk promised that he would donate the funds necessary to update the water systems for homes and public schools in Flint that had contaminated water. Trying to make good on that promise, Musk recently reportedly donated $480,000 via the Musk Foundation to Flint public schools. It's expected that those new water systems will be installed by the new year.
Unfortunately, the contaminated water problem isn't isolated to Flint alone, there are many other regions that need costly updates to their own water systems.
Musk's donation comes years after the Michigan Legislature approved of at least $165 million in aid that would be dedicated toward addressing the water issues in Flint.
This summer however, state officials questioned why the city hadn't yet drawn down the funds that are available to them to combat this issue. It's alleged that city officials had been asserting that they didn't have the funds to pay for contracts to get the work done, but they' only seemed to have accessed less than 20 percent of the state and federal funds that have been made available to them.
Some people have been asking where all the money has been going that's been donated to the problem, they've questioned whether or not it's going toward addressing the pipes.
So far, it's reported that more than 6,600 pipes have been replaced, which makes up only about 37 percent of the total lead pipelines that will need to be updated.
Concerns for contaminated water due to lead pipes aren't a worry that's restricted to Flint alone. You might be surprised to find out that there are many regions around the U.S. that have been found to have questionable or contaminated water. Some estimates suggested that the U.S. is in need of an overall upgrade to its water systems that could run upwards of $1 trillion.
Pics:
Pixabay
Government again demonstrating its systemic incompetence and inefficiency while people continue to claim we need more government.
😄😄 but the roads, you see...
Oh, right. I forgot about how impossible it is to create flat places where complicated machines are able to operate at high speeds, or develop rules for things like right-of-way.
ain't no way we could fathom getting it done otherwise...
#youdidntbuildthat
I upvoted your post.
Keep steeming for a better tomorrow.
@Acknowledgement - God Bless
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Rather than spending billions in defence budget, they have to care for their own people who needs their help. Water, food, cloth and home are the basic needs of s human being. Never thought that the best country of the world would have a problem regarding these basic needs! This needs to changed ASAP!
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I suppose America needs to re-examine its priorities and decide to allocate its funds maybe more wisely.
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What a mess. It is amazing to me that many of these systems have not been updated over the decades. I have heard out aging electrical infrastructure is no better.