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Showing posts from September, 2020

Erin Brockovich Claims the US is in an Unimaginable Water Crisis

In 2000, Erin Brockovich became the subject of an Academy-award winning feature film , which depicted her role in a lawsuit against Pacific Gas & Electric. Portrayed by Julia Roberts, Brockovich is known for almost single-handedly bringing down the California-based power company accused of polluting a city’s water supply. Through the years, she has continued to raise awareness concerning pollution and other environmental threats. In an opinion article for The Guardian , Brockovich wrote , “We are in a water crisis beyond anything you can imagine. Pollution and toxins are everywhere, stemming from the hazardous wastes of industry and agriculture. We’ve got more than 40,000 chemicals on the market today with only a few hundred regulated. We’ve had industrial byproducts discarded into the ground and into our water supply for years. This crisis affects everyone – rich or poor, black or white, Republican or Democrat. Communities everywhere think they are safe when they are not.” “T

State of Michigan to Pay Victims of Flint Water Crisis $600M

Flint residents affected by the toxic lead water crisis will be eligible to receive payments from a $600 million preliminary settlement. A court-monitored victim compensation fund will allow Flint water crisis victims to receive hundreds of millions of dollars in payments. The parties involved in the settlement include the state of Michigan, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, and all individual state defendants, including former governor Rick Snyder. Almost 80 percent of the settlement fund will be divvied out to children who were under 18 when the crisis began in April 2014. The effects of lead are especially poignant in children, as the mineral impacts brain development. An earmarked $12-million fund will be created in escrow to offer special education and other services for children who suffer chronic health/behavioral impacts as a direct result of lead poisoning. Another $35 million will be placed in a trust for “forgotten children” who cannot file claims within th