Mississippi Faces EPA Probe of Jackson Water Supply Cutoff

In August, heavy rainstorms flooded Jackson’s major water-treatment facility, leading to low water stress. Many Jackson residents, who had been underneath a boil-water discover for weeks when the power flooded, didn’t have operating water for a number of days and needed to depend on bottled water offered by the state.

About 83% of Jackson’s 150,000 residents are Black, in accordance with Census figures.

In its criticism, the NAACP alleged that the state of Mississippi repeatedly disadvantaged Jackson of federal funds to keep up its water system and as an alternative gave cash to smaller, majority-white communities with much less acute wants.

“The result’s persistently unsafe and unreliable ingesting water and large gaps within the entry to secure ingesting water which are insupportable in any fashionable society,” the criticism mentioned.

Representatives for Mississippi’s departments of well being and environmental high quality didn’t reply to requests for remark.

The EPA mentioned in an announcement that agreeing to analyze the criticism doesn’t imply it has reached any judgment on its advantage or the veracity of its allegations.

Abre’ Conner, the NAACP’s environmental and local weather justice director, mentioned in an announcement that the choice to analyze the civil-rights group’s criticism was a major first step in holding the state of Mississippi accountable.

“For a lot too lengthy, residents of Jackson, like Black communities throughout this nation, have had water entry weaponized in opposition to them,” Ms. Conner mentioned.