TFTT Report

President Obama, in response to the water crisis in Flint, Michigan, called on the country to “fix the culture of neglect” that allowed lead in water pipes to spiral out of control. Flint was certainly a warning that we need to come together as a nation to address our infrastructure needs, but also that we need to take tough action to ensure accountability from our leaders.

In a recent piece in Water & Waste Digest, former EPA water official Brent Fewell argued that at the heart of the issue is actually a “neglect of culture” that allows government officials who make bad decisions, like in Flint, to be shielded by sovereign immunity protections. Fewell calls for holding failing systems, and those decision makers involved in those failing systems, accountable for their actions. He notes that all to often regulators are willing to turn a blind eye to violations by municipalities out of fear that taxpayers will ultimately be left paying the bill, yet the public really should expect government officials to be held to the same standard as CEOs of a private company. Fewell concludes, “We must change the broken culture of water in this country if we are to ensure our water is clean and safe.”