Jackson's main water treatment plant was damaged after a flood in late August, and while water pressure has mostly been restored, viral videos show undrinkable brown liquid coming out of taps.
We end today’s show in Jackson, Mississippi, the majority-Black city where tens of thousands of residents who went for two to three weeks without water have now had their water restored in most cases. But in videos that have gone viral online, many say it’s brown water that’s coming out of their taps. Meanwhile, the capital city remains under a boil water notice as children return to school.
The latest water crisis stemmed from a flooded water treatment plant but has been decades in the making. As residents look for solutions, Mississippi’s Republican Governor Tate Reeves says, quote, “Privatization is on the table,” unquote. But privatizing Jackson’s water system may be part of what led to the crisis.
For more, we look at how Jackson contracted with the German multinational conglomerate Siemens in 2010 to overhaul the city’s water infrastructure and install new water meters for its billing system. The system turned out to be faulty. Siemens said it went, quote, “above and beyond its contractual obligations to help address the city’s well-known challenges, which are complex,” unquote.
headlined “This multi-billion dollar corporation exacerbated the water crisis in Jackson, Mississippi.” It’s published in the independent newsletterWe just have five minutes. Lay out what you found. Tell us about Siemens, and tell us about this brown water that is coming out of people’s faucets now.Well, I think the brown water is a reflection of the, really, system that’s been deteriorating now for decades.
They came to the city offering a solution, but this contract ended up being a disaster. Not only did it not meet their promises, the automated meters didn’t work really at all. Many people stopped getting bills. Those who got bills received ones that were far too high, and did not pay them. And so it created massive deficits, and ultimately led to a lawsuit that was filed by the city. And ultimately, they agreed to a settlement — Siemens agreed to a settlement.
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