Victoria's Environmental Health Blog

Part 1: Safe water for everyone is one of the most important basic human life needs. It is a right that everyone should have for their well-being and health. States are in charge of funding public water systems, and it is of the utmost importance that every system is not in violation of unsafe water. Unfortunately, when states do not act quickly, this is how situations like Flint, Michigan’s lead water occur. Nothing was done about the aging and corroded pipes in the water supply, and 6,000 to 12,000 children were poisoned with the leached lead (Arquhar, 2019). This has happened repeatedly since the federal government put states in charge and instead of the government setting the standards based on the Clean Water Act and Safe Water Act and providing the money. (Arquhar, 2019). Figure 1 demonstrates how in the 1970’s the federal government had a more active role in investing in water infrastructure and how over time this has changed, and the state and local governments are investing

  Unsafe water is dangerous for human health as it is the cause of millions of deaths and illnesses (Landrigan et al., 2018). Water is contaminated through chemicals or hazardous substances that then make it unsafe for consumption. Lubbock county has a history of water violations and unsafe water. Some examples include issues with chemically derived contents such as aluminum, nitrate, arsenic, and fluoride. Certain substances are within regulation, the standards are usually higher than what health experts advise. Other substances are not regulated yet evidence shows they are harmful to human health. For example, studies show that aluminum in drinking water causes numerous health problems such as Alzheimer's disease, weak bones and damage to the nervous system through diffused aluminum ions in the blood plasma. (Krupińska, 2020). The World Health Organization (2017) recommends aluminum levels lower than 0.2 mg/dm3, but 0.1 mg/dm3 is ideal and feasible. The city of Lubbock's (202