City of Flint issues water update for Flint residents

FLINT, Mich.— August 17, 2022

While the Great Lakes Water Authority (GLWA) makes repairs, the City of Flint will continue to receive 100% of its water from the secondary Genesee County Drain Commission (GCDC) pipeline. Like the GLWA line, the GCDC line also pulls water from Lake Huron. The City’s water treatment process and water quality have been unaffected by this change.

There is no boil water advisory for the City of Flint. The GLWA line maintained water pressure at 85 PSI as the City transitioned to the Cedar St. Reservoir, and then to the GCDC line. The City also maintained water pressure through the distribution center at 70 PSI. The threshold for a boil water advisory is 20 PSI, and the City of Flint’s system never came close to that risk.

On Saturday, August 13, GLWA issued the boil water advisory for every community that could have been affected by the water main break. “Some communities have backup systems like ours and some don’t,” Flint Public Works Director Mike Brown said. “GLWA made the right call to protect public health, even though the reality in the City of Flint was that a boil water advisory was not necessary.”

GLWA has extended its repair timeline to three weeks. While GLWA works to restore services, the GCDC has issued a voluntary water conservation advisory as a precautionary measure for all residents in Genesee County, including the City of Flint.

According to a statement on the GCDC website, “During this period, GCDC-WWS asks residents to consider limiting high water usage activities such as watering lawns, using sprinkler systems, washing down cars and buildings, flushing gutters, or other non-essential high usage activities.”

The City of Flint will continue to provide updates to residents until normal water delivery is restored through GLWA.

“When it comes to water, the Flint community has been traumatized,” Mayor Sheldon Neeley said. “Any hint of disruption to our water delivery is re-traumatizing for our residents. We understand that we have a long road to rebuilding trust in our water system, and we will continue to share the facts about Flint’s updated water infrastructure to reassure residents that our water is safe.”