Item Photo By OWEN O’ROURKE
Seth Gabriel doing a PH test on water at the Lynn water treatment plant.
By GABE MARTINEZ
The Flint water crisis has made national headlines for the failure of government agencies to communicate effectively with its citizens.
The water crisis began in 2011 when the city of Flint, Michigan was put under state management by Gov. Rick Snyder. In 2013, one of the city’s state managers recommended that Flint no longer import water from the Detroit water system, and instead pump water from the nearby Flint river. The move was set to save the city $1 million a year.
In April 2014, almost immediately after switching the water supply, residents began complaining about the taste, and odor of the water. Residents also started coming forward with cases of rashes, hair loss, and illnesses. After months of denials, Flint finally admitted to elevated lead levels in the water, and began importing its water back from Detroit.
A crisis like Flint is unheard of in 2016, especially in the U.S. but is still worrying for many due to the massive failures at every level. Cities like Lynn say they are prepared, and are confident a crisis like the one in Flint will not happen here.
“We test for certain things daily, other things monthly, and others yearly,” said Lynn Water and Sewer Commission Executive Director Dan O’Neill.
O’Neill said that the department is testing 42 locations daily, and they would know immediately if any bacteria levels increased.
“We send people that day if we receive a complaint,” he said.
The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) which supplies the water for Saugus, Lynnfield, Swampscott, Nahant, Marblehead, and Revere has tried to ease resident concerns over lead issues in the local water supply, as well.
In Flint, when the initial data suggested that there were elevated lead levels in the water, it was dismissed by city and state officials.
According to a fact sheet provided by the MWRA, the organization tracks customer complaints
daily and has a list of every lead sample taken since 1992.
The MWRA’s use of two stable sources, the Wachusett and Quabbin reservoirs are what it believes helps keep its quality for the more than 2.5 million people that drink its water.
In 2014 at the Annual American Water Works Association Conference conference in Boston the MWRA and the City of Boston received first and second place respectively for best tasting water. According to the fact sheet.
Flint has now switched its water source back to Detroit’s water system, but many issues remain, and public trust is at an all time low.
Lynn and the MWRA are certain that what happened in Flint will not happen on the North Shore.
“A lead problem would not happen here,” said O’Neill. “(If there was a problem) We are 100 percent confident we will find the problem early.”
Gabe Martinez can be reached at [email protected] follow him on Twitter @gemartinez92.