EPA launches civil rights probe over longstanding water problems in Jackson, Mississippi
By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS, MATTHEW DALY and AARON MORRISON Associated Press
Posted:
Updated:
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Thursday that it is investigating whether Mississippi state agencies discriminated against the state’s majority-Black capital city by refusing to fund improvements for its failing water system.
The announcement came days after leaders of two congressional committees said they were starting a joint investigation into a crisis that left most homes and businesses in Jackson without running water for several days in late August and early September.
Heavy rainfall in late August exacerbated problems at Jackson’s main water treatment facility. Republican Gov. Tate Reeves declared an emergency Aug. 29, and the state health department and the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency have been overseeing operations and repairs at the facility since then.
About 80% of Jackson’s 150,000 residents are Black, and about a quarter of the population lives in poverty. By the time Reeves issued the emergency order, Jackson residents had already been told for a month to boil their water before to kill possible contaminants.
Read the full story here:
Michael Goldberg
Floodwaters covered the streets in some parts of the North Canton Circle neighborhood of Jackson, Miss., on Monday, Aug. 29, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Goldberg)
Michael Goldberg
Residents in the North Canton Circle neighborhood of Jackson, Miss., on Monday, Aug. 29, 2022, were advised to evacuate from impending floodwaters. Some moved out all of their possessions in U-Haul trucks or cars. (AP Photo/Michael Goldberg)
Michael Goldberg
Residents lined their doors and garages with sandbags to block the water in the North Canton Circle neighborhood of Jackson, Miss., on Monday, Aug. 29, 2022. Officials said they deployed 126,000 sandbags act as water barriers. (AP Photo/Michael Goldberg)
Rogelio V. Solis
Hinds County Emergency Management Operations deputy director Tracy Funches, uses a special yardstick to check flood levels in a northeast Jackson, Miss., neighborhood, Monday, Aug. 29, 2022. Flooding affected a number of neighborhoods that are near the Pearl River. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
Looking more like a boat ramp, the receding Pearl River flood waters hide the parking lot of the athletic fields on Westbrook Road in northeast Jackson, Miss., Monday, Aug. 29, 2022. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
Flood water from the Pearl River covered the parking lot at the Mississippi Basketball and Athletics Complex on Westbrook Road in northeast Jackson, Miss., Monday, Aug. 29, 2022. Although the waters were receding during the day, a couple of feet of water still covered streets in areas near the river or one of its back flow tributaries that flooded some homes. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
A gaggle of geese took advantage of the receding Pearl River flood waters to feast on small fish and worms deposited on athletic fields on Westbrook Road in northeast Jackson, Miss., Monday, Aug. 29, 2022. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
Hinds County Emergency Management Operations deputy director Tracy Funches, right, and operations coordinator Luke Chennault, wade through flood waters in northeast Jackson, Miss., Monday, Aug. 29, 2022, as they check water levels. Flooding affected a number neighborhoods that are near the Pearl River. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
Hinds County Emergency Management Operations deputy director Tracy Funches, checks flood levels in a northeast Jackson, Miss., neighborhood, Monday, Aug. 29, 2022. Flooding affected a number of neighborhoods that are near the Pearl River. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
Hinds County Emergency Management Operations deputy director Tracy Funches, left, and operations coordinator Luke Chennault, wade through flood waters in northeast Jackson, Miss., Monday, Aug. 29, 2022, as they check water levels. Flooding affected a number neighborhoods that are near the Pearl River. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
Debris laden flood waters surround this mailbox in a northeast Jackson, Miss., neighborhood, Monday, Aug. 29, 2022. Flooding affected a number neighborhoods that are near the Pearl River. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
A downed basketball goal is reflected in flood waters in a northeast Jackson, Miss., neighborhood, Monday, Aug. 29, 2022. Flooding affected a number neighborhoods that are near the Pearl River. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
Debris gathered on this tire indicates the level of flooding in this northeast Jackson, Miss., neighborhood, Monday, Aug. 29, 2022. Flooding affected a number neighborhoods near the Pearl River or have creeks that become back flow from its flooding. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
An SUV rests in flood waters in this northeast Jackson, Miss., neighborhood, Monday, Aug. 29, 2022. Flooding affected a number neighborhoods that are near the Pearl River. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
A sedan rests in flood waters in this northeast Jackson, Miss., neighborhood, Monday, Aug. 29, 2022. Flooding affected a number neighborhoods that are near the Pearl River. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
Flood waters rise in a Madison County, Miss., mobile home community, near the Ross Barnett Reservoir Spillway, Sunday, Aug. 28, 2022. The community, which was severely flooded in 2020, is expected to see severe flooding from the increased release of the accumulated water from heavy rains earlier this week. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
Residents record the rising floodwaters on their cellphones in a northeast Jackson, Miss., neighborhood, Sunday, Aug. 28, 2022, in anticipation of expected severe flooding from heavy rains days earlier in mid-Mississippi. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
Area residents peer over the security gate on the lane to the flooded Madison County, Miss., side of the fishing/boat launch at the Ross Barnett Reservoir Spillway Recreation Area, Sunday, Aug. 28, 2022, in Madison County, Miss. Local officials anticipate flooding in neighborhoods near the Pearl River, the results of severe flooding from heavy rains days earlier. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
A homeowner rushes through rising floodwaters in this northeast Jackson, Miss., neighborhood, Sunday, Aug. 28, 2022. Local officials anticipate flooding in neighborhoods near the Pearl River, the results of severe flooding from heavy rains days earlier. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Rogelio V. Solis
A homeowner keeps an eye on the floodwater's depth as he drives through a northeast Jackson, Miss., neighborhood, Sunday, Aug. 28, 2022. Local officials anticipate flooding in neighborhoods near the Pearl River, the results of severe flooding from heavy rains earlier in the week in mid-Mississippi. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
