WASHINGTON (July 30, 2019) – As Democratic presidential candidates gather in Detroit for this week’s debates, the specter of Michigan’s water woes loom in the background. While debating close to Flint, a city of 100,000 whose residents were exposed to neurotoxic lead through their drinking water system, and near multiple cities grappling with PFAS contamination of their water supply, the candidates should be outlining their solutions to America’s drinking water problems.
Following is a statement from Erik Olson, a senior adviser to the NRDC Action Fund on toxics and drinking water issues:
“Every American deserves clean, safe drinking water. I hope to hear the candidates’ plans to ensure funding to make sure our drinking water infrastructure delivers this basic necessity that, right now, is not coming to all our communities. Every level of government failed during the Flint Water Crisis and the moderators of this debate need to make sure that the public hears how the candidates would help prevent similar disasters.”