Water Warnings
The past week exposed the vulnerability of people and the waters on which life depends throughout the Great Lakes region. We have seen extraordinary disdain from elected officials about our responsibilities to one another and our earth.
First, there is the oil spill on the Great Lakes. On Sunday, April 1, the American Transmission Co.(ATC) discovered that two submerged power lines tripped offline. The lines run under the Straits of Mackinac, carrying electricity. On Monday the company reduced pressure on the system. It was not until late that afternoon that they notified the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) and the Coast Guard of a potential oil leak. On Tuesday, they finally shut off power. About 600 gallons of highly toxic mineral oil used to insulate power cables had leaked from a small tear. ATC said that its slow response was due to poor weather conditions including ice on the water and its inability to ascertain the source of the problem.
This recent oil spill underscores the vulnerability of the Great Lakes. For several years people have challenged the wisdom of government officials allowing companies like TransCanada and Enbridge to transport millions of gallons of oil and natural gas through pipelines under the Straits. "The writing is on the wall that accidents happen," said Liz Rosan Kirkwood, executive director of FLOW: For Love of Water. "Pipelines and other lines fail regardless of the technology and precautions that companies take. Human error and mechanical problems are the leading causes of pipeline failure."
On Friday, as efforts to clean up the spill and monitor its effects continued, the Governor announced the State will stop distributing free bottled water to residents of Flint. Most people in Flint do not think the water is safe to drink. Lead levels are sometimes high and trust in the State is justifiably low. Currently, the State spends about $650,000 a month on bottled water for Flint. "It's too quick," said Flint activist Melissa Mays of the group Water You Fighting For. "They're putting dollars and cents ahead of Flint residents, which is how we got here in the first place." Mays is concerned about lead spikes resulting from the ongoing removal of Flint's lead water lines, plus other water contaminants, such as bacteria.
While cutting off bottled water to Flint, the State gave the go-ahead to Nestle Waters North America to double the amount of water it is pumping out of the ground and selling around the world. On Monday, just before getting news of the oil spill, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality said it is fine for Nestle to pump 400 gallons of water a minute into Ice Mountain bottles.
The MDEQ made this decision in spite of receiving the largest number of comments in the history of the state against the idea. It was reported that 80,945 people wrote against increasing the capacity of Nestle to take water. Only 75 people wrote in favor.
In a comprehensive report on the issue for Public Radio, Linda Smith said the three main reasons against Nestle were: one, corporate greed versus people and the environment; two, water is not for profit; and three, worries about privatizing water. About 40,000 people wrote about each of those concerns.
Meanwhile, the city of Detroit announced another 17,461 households are scheduled for shut-offs from water. This announcement followed the approval by the Detroit City Council of a $7.8 million contract for Homrich Wrecking to shut off people from the water.
The pattern is clear. Those in authority see water as a source of money. Neither water nor the people who depend upon it, need to be protected or respected.
This past week should be a call to all of us to insist by every means necessary that water is a human right and a sacred trust. Warning signs are everywhere.