Federal authorities within the United States Environmental Protection Agency give themselves thirty days to let the public know if there's a problem with their local drinking water. That's a long time to be drinking water that might be infested with lead, copper, tritium or mercury, all deadly and invisible substances that sometimes contaminate drinking water reservoirs.
By contrast, North Carolina law requires people to be notified in 48 hours if their water contains lead or copper. Now North Carolina's Department of Environmental Quality is telling the EPA that the federal agency should adopt NC's tougher water protections.
It comes as a surprise that such a conservative state would say that the EPA is not doing enough to protect the environment. North Carolina state leaders are known for pushing back against EPA regulations. However, the Flint water crisis clearly shows that steps are needed to prevent mass water contamination in the future.
Please join me in asking the Environmental Protection Agency to do as North Carolina suggests and adopt tougher protections of drinking water.
To the Environmental Protection Agency:
I think we can all agree that the water crisis in Flint, Michigan is a disaster. And steps need to be taken to prevent it from happening again and in another community. North Carolina has laws in place that people must be notified within forty-eight hours if their water is contaminated with lead or copper. Those same state leaders have challenged you to adopt a similar policy at the national level. This seems like a good idea for any number of reasons, not the least of which is the heartbreaking events in Flint. Please adopt a policy that requires communities to be notified within 48 hours if their water is contaminated.
