Officials Say Milestone Reached In Lead Line Work in Flint, Environmental Group Disagrees
SOUTHFIELD (CBS Detroit/ AP) - Officials in Flint say they are ahead of schedule replacing the lead service lines from its contaminated water crises, but critics disagree.
The city reports that it has checked more than 18,000 service lines, and replaced 7,700. The Mayor of Flint, Karen Weaver, said there are between 10,000 and 12,000 more to test and officials have dealt with those deemed the highest priority.
Critics, including The Natural Resources Defense Council, which is part of a lawsuit over the lead issue, says the city hasn't prioritized homes most likely to have lead and galvanized steel pipes. It adds thousands of the excavated pipes have been copper.
This is false. Flint was reportedly violating its settlement by digging up thousands of copper service lines rather than prioritizing homes that are likely to have the more hazardous lead and galvanized steel pipes. https://t.co/5klzRJzK5V
— NRDC ???????? (@NRDC) December 4, 2018
A landmark legal settlement reached early last year calls for fully removing the lead pipes by the end of next year.
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