Flint Mayor: Water Still Showing Lead Levels Beyond What Filters Can Remove

Flint Mayor: Water Still Showing Lead Levels Beyond What Filters Can Remove

After lead poisoned the drinking water in Flint, residents received filters they were told would make their tap water safe. Now, tests over the last 24 hours are showing that lead levels in some homes are still too high for a filter to handle.

At a press conference today, Mayor Karen Weaver delivered the statement alongside representatives from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, which administered the testing. She encouraged residents to have their water tested immediately before using filters.

Some filters, specifically gravity-fed ones certified by the National Sanitation Foundation, are able to remove reasonable amounts of lead from drinking water, about 150 parts per billion. What Flint is seeing, however, are some levels higher than 150 parts per billion — in other words, what can safely be removed by those filters. It’s not every home, but it is enough homes to cause an alarm.

Test kits are now being distributed so residents can continue to monitor their water and know when it’s safe to go back to the tap — if it ever will be.

Meanwhile, US Congress has proposed $US400 million in federal aid which could help replace the city’s lead pipes.

[WXYZ]

Brett Carlsen / Getty Images


The Cheapest NBN 50 Plans

It’s the most popular NBN speed in Australia for a reason. Here are the cheapest plans available.

At Gizmodo, we independently select and write about stuff we love and think you'll like too. We have affiliate and advertising partnerships, which means we may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page. BTW – prices are accurate and items in stock at the time of posting.