The Daily Beast has obtained new information regarding the decisions leading up to the fateful decision to temporarily switch Flint, Michigan’s water source to the Flint River. A civil deposition from former Flint chief financial officer (and later, emergency manager) Jerry Ambrose reveals that in 2012 he and then-emergency manager Ed Kurtz ruled the Flint River out as a permanent water source when seeking new options for the city. According to the report:
In a civil deposition not reported until now, Ambrose testified under oath that emergency manager Kurtz considered a proposal to use the Flint River, discussed the option with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, and then rejected it.
In 2014, Ambrose was deposed in a civil lawsuit brought by retired Flint municipal workers against the state over severe cuts to their health care benefits. Attorney Alec Gibbs questioned Ambrose about the water decision (a year before Flint learned it was being poisoned).
“There was brief evaluation of whether the city would be better off to simply use the Flint River as its primary source of water over the long term,” Ambrose said. “That was determined not to be feasible.”
“Who determined it wasn’t feasible?” Gibbs asked.
“It was a collective decision of the emergency management team based on conversations with the MDEQ that indicated they would not be supportive of the use of the Flint River on a long-term basis as a primary source of water,” Ambrose answered.
“What was the reason they gave?” Gibbs asked.
“You’ll have to ask them,” Ambrose said.
How could the river that was rejected as Flint’s permanent water source in December 2012 suddenly become suitable for consumption a mere 16 months later?
It is important to note that the decision not to use the Flint River as a permanent water source and the decision to go ahead and use it as a temporary source while waiting to connect to the new Karegnondi Water Authority pipeline are separate and distinct. This report details the decision by the emergency manager to avoid using the river as a permanent source.
Ambrose does not give reasons for the decision to avoid using the river permanently. However, city reports from 2011 indicate that the Flint Water Treatment facility, which had served the city until 1960, would require at least $60 million in upgrades to be able to treat the water properly for use as a primary source. The river had been heavily polluted by the automotive industry for decades, and while it was considered by some to be drinkable, the lack of infrastructure to properly treat what was undeniably a more polluted source than other options made it unpalatable. There were also concerns that the treatment facility could not provide the volume needed to make a permanent switch feasible.
It is clear that—even when making the distinction between using the Flint River permanently or temporarily—somewhere along the line, the tune about the Flint River as a water source changed in a major way. And with the idea that the switch was motivated by money now under scrutiny, why would state officials and emergency managers appointed by Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder suddenly decide that the Flint River was a good choice—even if temporarily?
