A public laboratory now open in Flint has set a goal of testing the tap water of 21-thousand households over the next three years. The Flint Community Water Lab will employ high school and college students who will collect and analyze water samples for lead.
The service will be free to the public.
The lab is supported by the city of Flint as well as a number of commercial industries and foundations in the area.
Jill Ryan is the executive director of Freshwater Future, a nonprofit clean water advocacy group. She says the lab is built on the earned trust of the community.
“Earned because you can see from your individual water test results what is happening in your home at your tap," said Ryan. "Individual homes have to be safe and secure and have access to clean, trusted water.”
The state reports Flint’s water has met federal standards for three consecutive years. To date, nearly 98-hundred lead service lines have been replaced in the city.
