Flint, Michigan

On April 25th, 2014 the water supply in Flint, Michigan disconnected from Detroit's water supply and switched to Flint River to save money. Flint River was contaminated, and officials did not properly test the water before distributing it to the residents. For 18 months, people dealt with the discolored water and lead poisoning. The residents compiled a good amount of complaints over the course of these 18 months This river was used as a dumping ground for many factories and waste plants. Lead poisoning mainly among kids was very common and put kids in hospitals In 2016 they went to Court, they pushed for clean water for the residents and until it was fixed they would temporarily have clean bottled water. In November 2016, residents were supplied bottled water to use to wash and bathe in. Later, in 2017 officials were finally charged. Today, there is still an uneasy feeling about what comes out of their tap.

Image from FlintWaterStudy

Warren County, North Carolina

In mid-September in Warren County, North Carolina the state government sent 6,000 truckloads of soil laced with PCB's to be dumped there. PCB's are very harmful and are known to cause: cancer, neurological effects, reproductive effects, and immune effects. Eventually people began to speak up and complain about the waste contaminating their water. Their concerns were dismissed by state officials. Non-violent protests started to occur. For six weeks, they protested. They blocked the roads by laying down in front of the trucks to the landfill The people in Warren Count, lost their battle. However it gained a lot of attention and inspired people all over the United States.

Images from Ricky Stillely Photography

Love Canal, New York

Love Canal located near Niagara Falls was home to thousands of homes. It sat ontop of 21,000 tons of toxic industrial waste. In the 40's and 50's Hooker Chemical Company disposed of the large amounts of waste on the land. This left a serious impact on the future residents that would live there. Families developed harmful cancers such as leukemia from the exposure to these toxic chemicals. In 1978 the issue became more serious and officials could not avoid it any longer.