Flint's Crisis: The Costly Consequences of Water Pollution

Water pollution is a serious matter that should be accounted for. Every living being has a right to acquire a life-sustaining resource as water. A city in Michigan known as Flint is a victim of having contaminated essentials. In Flint, statistics show that not only is it in poverty, but over forty percent of its residents have a low income. It is revealing because most peers in the city felt personally victimized by the lack of supervision in its water distribution. It is churlish and insubordinate for any human being to acquiesce and it will be known around The United States, that officials can too, cause harm to the innocence. Yet, it is despicable to witness people suffering from agony with a few resources that are offered.

A reign of terror began slowly for the innocent city. It commenced when The City of Flint came upon a quest of a cost friendly water supply. All the attention was pointed sharply towards the Flint River. In an attempt to save upon millions of dollars, it leads to a demise. One of the nation’s largest manufacturing companies (General Motors) was one of the few who had suspected a danger in its water from Flint. Though, based in Detroit, the group has many facilities in Flint. General Motors made a switch to Lake Huron for a new water source for their manufacturing necessities because of a conspiracy that

Flint water can cause corrosions on auto parts.
Soon after, the residents complained about the color and smell of this new water source. Many people have started to get ill and were sent to the hospital. The quality of the Flint River was distasteful. It stored a high amount of chloride and it can rust iron and the water pipes. The problem with lead was founded by The University of Michigan, Flint. Which high levels of lead as well, UMF was able to notify its students about hazards in the water.
Most scientists say, testings could have been done before switching from Detroit water base system. Peers from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality noted the kind of testing is not required under drinking-water rules and has never been done in Michigan. What’s more, they said, the Flint River water, treated in the city’s plant, was already approved as a backup supply in case of interrupted service from Detroit.
In the hospital, many residents have been blood tested. Governor of Flint, Rick Snyder had expressed concerns about the innocent who had consumed the tainted water in an act of desperation to save the thousands who were ill. Nevertheless, by donating bottled water to the residents, people found a way to beat lead poisoning. Still, the problem is not fixed quite yet. People are still pointing fingers at Flint for its unintentional damages. The length of the crisis has covered outbreaks of Legionnaire’s disease, which only resulted in death. The same corrosion of GM auto parts encouraged the growth of Legionella bacteria, which prosper in warm water that contains pieces of iron and nutrient for the bacteria from aging pipes. Steven King once said, “Nightmares exist outside of logic, and there’s little fun to be had in explanations; they’re antithetical to the poetry of fear.”
Legionnaire’s disease is caused by a bacterial infection and the symptoms usually include fever, pneumonia (causing respiratory and breathing problems) muscle ache and fever. Notably, in five to thirty percent of cases, the infection turns out to be fatal. Between June 2014 and November 2015, Genesee County (within which the city of Flint is located), recorded a total of eighty-seven cases of the Legionnaire's disease. Opposed to the county, they recorded between six and thirteen cases in the four years before that. Of the eighty-seven that were reported in the past few months, ten turned out to be fatal.
Some Say, the city officials are to blame and it has a bit of truth to it. The United States Environmental Protection Agency were told by the city that they had a corrosion plan declared already. City officials had an idea that uncoiled itself from a moronic part of the brain and decided to add lime. They thought lime would rid the corrosion and soften the water. Such a marvelous plan as it sounded, however, it only made the water even more so complicated.
Due to the tainted water source, officials decided to switch back to Detroit's water source.
Amazingly, it cost around twelve million dollars to switch back, but there was still high levels lead. With nothing left to accomplish, city officials declared a state of emergency and the national guard soon distributed bottled water to the residents of Flint. As disheartening as it sounds, water pollution is a dangerous aspect of any living being. Flint is not the only city suffering from this dreadful disaster. It is clearly a domino effect.
In similar fashion, Detroit faced water problems of their own. Residents of Detroit, Michigan had their water cut off. About twenty thousand residents had their water cut and The Water and Sewerage Department tried to reduce more than ninety million dollars of people in debt (it was a way for officials to not lose money), and ordered to stop running water for customers who owed at least one hundred dollars or if they fell at least two months behind on schedule payments. As such a drastic measure as it seemed though done with no warning, it flamed with protests and bad publicity for the city. Water has become scarce for some of its poorest residents. With more than forty percent of residents who are living in poverty, the highest city rate in the nation, collect money for an essential really basic like water. The city was in crisis with unpaid water bills and this was the first action to move forward.
Solutions to help the residents of Flint are to spend upon millions of dollars to repair and reparations to its people. Water pipes have to be replaced in an abundant amount of homes. A new plan to purify the water needs to be assertive and the water district needs to be strict and not let the same mistakes from happening again. In Africa, Microsoft has made a machine to rid of pathogen and chemicals from the water. It is called the Omni-processor. It also has the ability to make water from feces, ash, and other resources.
Most of the homes in Flint had plumbing pipes made so long ago. Using copper and or lead pipes can cause mineral and bacteria build up. Today, it is wise to use plastic piping, otherwise known as “PEX”. PEX pipe is cross-linked polyethylene tubing that neither corrodes nor develops pinhole leaks.  Also it resists chlorine and scaling, and uses fewer fittings than rigid plastic and metallic pipe. Yet, it costs less than the average plumbing pipe one can buy. Copper does have a few disadvantages, though. Copper is expensive, whereas PEX is about a fraction of the cost. It can still corrode based on the pH levels of water and if you live in some cold areas as if in the east coast, frozen water can cause copper pipes to burst.
As most people know, Microsoft is the world’s most successful enterprise for technology that is owned by Bill Gates. Gates once said, “Microsoft is not about greed. It’s about innovation and fairness.” Unity and kinship is what society needs to help themselves gain back the peace they once had. In comparison, 2001: A Space Odyssey, is a film that provides valuable information for the greater good. Reasons of comparing Gates and 2001 together is because it shows the innovation of technology. It shows how technology can help us prosper to new horizons. Thus, giving the helpless a since of emotion that they can carry on instead of tragedy.
The Omni-processor is a steam machine created by gates and it is used to turn feces into drinkable water. As discomforting as it sounds it can be the cure to water pollution.
It works with other forms of polluted areas such as rain and dirt. This machine is meant for countries in poverty such as third world and some parts of Africa. Most people can agree that they would not want to drink from feces, but it seems as a great option because about forty percent of Flint is in poverty. That is almost half of its residents. With this technology, it can dispense bottles and even a gallon of water of a fraction of the average cost for drinkable water. Thus, giving people a bit of an advantage over using tainted water to drink causing people to be hospitalized and ill.
In similar fashion, what comes with innovation is a sense of dignity and pride. With fixing these new problems with upgrades to every home. People can be rejoiced without worry.
However, many people have strong emotional or physical reactions following experience of a traumatic event for instance the water crisis. For most, these reactions subside over a few days or weeks, but time is being what everyone needs is to jump back to who they once were. For some, the symptoms can last longer or be worse. In regards to healing, others should help the Flint River. By helping it means to create ways to detox and clean whatever they can do to save its water supply.
The “Seabin” is an innovated piece of cleaning technology.

Though, used in the oceans to rid of any oils, trash, and toxins. It will create cleaner oceans that can provide a healthy living for marina life. The Seabin project is helping create a better way of life for everyone and every living thing. It was created by Australians Andrew Turton and Pete Ceglinski to help marina life because some of the worlds trash goes into the ocean causing sea life to have deformities. With such a great technological advancement demonstrates the possibility of providing endless opportunities to deem human beings capable of fixing life sustaining

resources.
In contrast the City of Flint might not have all the money in the world to mend what has been done. Claiming a state of emergency as they did, the United States government should lend more of a helping hand. With new clothes offered and decent showers because it is awful wearing bacteria on one’s clothes and being drenched in septic consistency of water.
The City of Flint should take it upon themselves and catapult for a helping hand from Microsoft. It is not a frugal machine, but it is an investment for its residents. Thus, with this machine, it can start flushing out all of the trash and other misfortunes it contained. Not only will this provide hope for its residents, but it will also be a heroic act of the officials and Microsoft. By this action, it can be a remarkable day in history and an evolution of great deeds can be achieved throughout the entire nation and even across the world.