Unfortunately to say, Flint, Michigan’s water supply is still contaminated with high-levels of lead. According to Jason Hanna from CNN, on Friday District Court Judge David Lawson ruled for bottled water to be sent to “any home where the government hasn’t verified that a filter is properly working.” Though still to this day, citizens of Flint fear their water filters due to news of Nakeyja’s (one of Flint’s many citizens with very limited access to water) water filter which cause her daughter to have seizures and her 3-year-old son to not speak and stare and one location for long periods of time. “Nakeyja, a resident of Flint, showed me how the government issued filter does not work. She tested it in front of me and it was at 184 ppb. It’s supposed to be less than 15,” Michael Skolnik, a entrepreneur and activist, wrote on his Instagram page back in February.
The side effects of lead come in a variety of symptoms, for children there are possibilities of developmental delay, abdominal pain and even hearing loss. Adults’ risks include memory loss, high blood pressure, musical pains, declines in mental functioning, constipation, joint pains and even mood disorders. However, according to Mayo Clinic, all these symptoms are only active until the human body has digested with extreme levels of lead. In other words, nothing will be detected until you’re in deep medical trouble. “Signs and symptoms usually don’t appear until dangerous amounts have accumulated,” Mayo Clinic staff wrote.
Another dangerous water situation is over 1,000 miles away in North Dakota. Yes, it’s the controversial North Dakota Pipeline which, as of now, has been paused until President Obama approves its construction. The multi-billion dollar project is 70% complete and is set to transport nearly “470,000 barrels of oil per day through North Dakota.” However, that has not stopped protesters from marching peacefully to continue their anti-pipeline fight. In the beginning of the construction of the pipeline, Native-Americans were outraged by the destruction of sacred prayer sites but now they’ve slightly shifted their focus to attempting to keep the water safe for the millions of people for which the Missouri River and Lake Oahe provides. “It’s not a matter of if a pipeline spills, but when a pipeline spills,” Dallas Goldtooth, a comedian and activist, said.
Goldtooth’s point was supported after news of a pipeline explosion in Alabama surfaced. TIME reported that “a section of a crucial pipeline exploded yesterday in Alabama, killing one. The Colonial Pipeline provides gasoline to more than 50m people on the East Coast.” Colonial has so far begun constructing a temporary pipeline to “bypass the compromised section of the leaking pipeline in Shelby County, Alabama.”
Water is one of the most important resources that are completely mandatory for the human body; your physical capacity is completely based on hydration. Along comes the fact that the digestion of food is impossible without water due to the fact that it produces saliva and hydrochloric acid, which assists in “the transportation of nutrients.” Irresponsibility (Flint) and a lack of empathy (North Dakota Pipeline) are juggling the lives of Americans who need clean water sources. These conversations must continue to guarantee safety for both communities of people.
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