Flint Safe Drinking Water Case Documents and Status Updates

The legal filing and status updates for our lawsuit against the city of Flint and Michigan state officials.

Court Documents

Settlement Agreement Status Reports

The city of Flint and state of Michigan are required to provide NRDC with periodic status reports to allow the parties to track the government’s progress in implementing the requirements of the settlement agreement in our case. These reports include information about the number of service lines excavated and replaced, as well as the results of recent tap water monitoring tests. 

Independent Monitoring Program 

As a result of the lawsuit, the court established a third-party Independent Monitoring program to conduct tap water testing for lead at an additional 100 homes in Flint. The settlement funds this testing for at least two six-month periods. This program is managed by Dr. Susan Masten, a Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Michigan State University. The documents on this page include Dr. Masten’s resume, a brochure distributed to residents describing the program, and the data from her testing.

• Independent Lead Testing in Flint, Michigan, Testing Period 1 - Report (PDF)
• Independent Testing for Lead - Data, January 9, 2018 (XLS)
• Brochure on Lead and Copper Sampling (PDF)
• Dr. Masten’s Curriculum Vitae (PDF)

Related documents

• Declaration of Erik D. Olson, February 23, 2024 (PDF)

In a civil action filed by Flint, Michigan, residents against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over its role in the Flint water crisis, Burgess v. EPA [Civil Action No. 5:16-cv-10444-JEL-MKM], Erik D. Olson, NRDC’s senior strategic director for health, filed a declaration in his personal capacity. 

Burgess v. EPA was filed under the Federal Tort Claims Act by Flint residents seeking damages from the federal government. The lawsuit is separate from Concerned Pastors for Social Action v. Khouri—the Safe Drinking Water Act citizen suit filed on behalf of Flint residents by NRDC that seeks, among other remedies, to clean up the city’s tap water, remove lead pipes, and provide an alternative source of safe drinking water.

In his declaration, linked above, Olson wrote: “…it is my conclusion that if the EPA had been engaging in appropriate oversight of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) and Flint, as required by the [Safe Drinking Water Act] and EPA’s regulations, the agency would have identified the serious problems with Flint’s water, the failure to maintain optimized corrosion control, and the need for enforcement action far earlier than when it finally issued an administrative order in January 2016. The agency should have taken enforcement action likely by mid-2014 but certainly no later than April 2015.”