News

Safe drinking water for city of Jackson, Mississippi

Clay Cane
November 14, 2022

Reading Time: 2 minutes

FIE – Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba discusses elements of a coordinated response with federal agencies that he believes will help deal with the city’s long-standing water problems, during a news briefing, Sept. 7, 2022, in Jackson, Miss. The beleaguered water system in Mississippi’s capital city disrupted daily life for 150,000 residents for several days, but Jackson’s water is now safe to drink according to the Environmental Protection Agency on Monday, Oct. 31, 2022. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)

Nearly two months after the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Michael Regan met with Jackson, Mississippi officials about the water crisis, the city is now in compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act. The mayor of Jackson said in a statement, ‘The EPA in conjunction with the Mississippi Department of Health performed a series of tests on our drinking water over the last several months are in and revealed that our water is, in fact, safe to drink.’

However, the lead and copper results will not be ready until mid-November. On October 28th, Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves extended the state of emergency order for Jackson until November 22nd. Due to a flooding over the summer, more than 150,000 people were without safe drinking water in Jackson, Mississippi.

FILE – A trickle of water comes out of the faucet of Mary Gaines a resident of the Golden Keys Senior Living apartments in her kitchen in Jackson, Miss., Sept. 1, 2022. The NAACP said Tuesday, Sept. 27, that Mississippi is discriminating against Jackson’s majority-Black population by diverting badly needed federal funds for drinking water infrastructure to white communities that needed it less. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)

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Clay Cane is an award-winning journalist, writer, radio host, and political commentator. A graduate of Rutgers University with a degree in African-American Studies, his work on race, culture, and politics have appeared in national publications, including the Washington Post, CNN, and The Grio. Clay is a regular political commentator on MSNBC. Twitter: @claycane