Flint Launches Free Water-Testing Lab
Flint, MI, may be synonymous with drinking water contamination in the minds of many, but a recent effort from the city may create a brand new legacy — one that demonstrates just how impactful scientific analysis and public health can be.
Earlier this month, Flint celebrated the opening of McKenzie Patrice Croom Flint Community Lab, a free drinking water testing lab that will also foster STEM education and job training.
“The community-built and operated lab that will, over the course of three years, provide free water testing to 21,000 households in Flint, is a joint-collaboration between … two Michigan-based, nonprofit organizations,” MLive reported. “The Flint Community Lab is named in honor of McKenzie Patrice Croom … [who] was born with seizures that were complicated by her exposure to Flint’s drinking water.”
In 2015, a public health emergency was declared for the city following the discovery of alarmingly high levels of lead in drinking water. The contaminant found its way into supplies through outdated, lead-based infrastructure. The city is currently attempting to replace all of this infrastructure and financially compensate affected residents. The creation of the community lab appears to be another stride toward rectifying the pervasive issue.
“The Flint Community Lab provides Flint residents with a trusted resource for free water testing of lead and other pollutants,” according to WSGW. “Through financial support from both philanthropic and private funders, the Flint Community Lab unifies residents around a common issue, the safety of water in their homes.”
Providing drinking water analysis appears to be a critical way of rebuilding trust with a community that was let down so comprehensively by their system. But the lab won’t be doing so passively; it will establish an outreach program that also provides training for local youth.
“A team of high school students work in the lab and serve as influencers in the community, going door-to-door and using social media to raise awareness of the lab’s services and the benefits of its water-testing program,” MLive explained. “The students are responsible for working with local residents, visiting their homes, while social distancing and wearing masks, and collecting water samples and then assisting in the lab to test those samples and educate residents on the results.”
Along with the ongoing infrastructure improvements and efforts to directly compensate victims, hopefully the Flint Community Lab can add to a new chapter in the drinking water for this city.
To read more about drinking water infrastructure issues, visit Water Online’s Asset Management Solutions Center.