A group of Flint residents and activists is worried government officials are gearing up to declare their water safe to drink without the testing they feel is needed to back it up.
Numbers released this month from the state and Virginia Tech show lead levels are improving overall.
Technically, Flint’s water may already meet federal standards for lead in tap water. Researchers and officials from all levels of government will meet early next month to go over all the data and determine next steps.
Melissa Mays, of the group Water You Fighting For?, held a press conference Tuesday morning to call into question the methods of water sampling and how officials will determine if the water is safe for everyone.
She points out there are still many residents with results coming in above the federal “action level” of 15 parts per billion.
Mays says the state shouldn't rely on tests from a couple hundred high-risk homes to show lead levels are dropping. She wants every single home in Flint to be tested.
“We have too many vulnerable people slipping through the cracks right now and there are too many high numbers, and you know what, I don’t care if it seems unrealistic because it’s unrealistic to us to think that everything’s OK when there’s not the data to back it up,” Mays said.
All Flint residents can get their water tested for free, but so far, only a third of households have done so.
