Flint Water System Advisory Council
Facilitating communication between Flint's water utility and residents to ensure safe, clean, affordable water for all
Announcements
This is a new site. Please help us to make it as user-friendly as possible by sending suggestions to our email address (wsac@cityofflint.com) or filling out our contact form.
About Us
Our Purpose
The Flint Water System Advisory Council (WSAC) was formed in 2021 after revisions to the Michigan Lead and Copper Rule required every water system serving at least 50,000 customers to establish a Community Water Advisory Council. The WSAC's mission is to help facilitate communication between Flint's water utility and residents about lead in water and other water issues. In accordance with the city charter, WSAC's volunteer members are nominated by the mayor and approved by City Council. The WSAC operates independently, setting its own agenda and running its own meetings.
Our Mission
To serve as a bridge between Flint residents and water system administrators, ensuring transparent communication about water quality, infrastructure improvements, and public health concerns.
Our Commitment
We are dedicated to advocating for safe, clean, affordable water for all Flint residents and providing accurate, timely information about water system operations and improvements.
WSAC Members
Jaron Houston
Flint Resident, Community Advocate
Gina Jenkins-Harrington (formerly Smith), MPH
Flint Resident, Public Health Advisor, LSSBB
Nancy Love, PhD
Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Michigan
Shawn McElmurry, PhD, PE
Professor of Environmental Engineering, Wayne State University
Sherri Hartwell Miller, MSW
Flint Resident, Community Organizer
Benjamin Pauli, PhD
Chair
Flint Resident, Associate Professor of Social Science, Kettering University
Lawrence Reynolds, MD
Flint Resident, Pediatrician, Public Health Advocate
Nayyirah Shariff
Flint Resident, Community Organizer
WSAC's Accomplishments
Aside from its usual public meetings, the WSAC has organized special meetings featuring guests from state and federal agencies, like the EPA personnel overseeing the 2016 EPA Emergency Order on Drinking Water in Flint. The WSAC has also organized focused conversations around Flint's Annual Water Quality Report and other water-related issues. In April 2023, the WSAC authored a letter urging the City of Flint to update the Alert Flint system to differentiate between emergency and non-emergency messages, an update that was implemented shortly thereafter. In April 2024, the WSAC's advocacy helped prompt the city to make public an administrative consent order (ACO) related to water infrastructure upgrades that were being mandated by the Michigan Department of the Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy. The WSAC has also advocated successfully on behalf of residents who have brought specific issues to the council--for example, by helping to prompt a city investigation (and ultimately, remediation) of stormwater issues near Miller Road that had resulted in numerous flooded homes.
WSAC in the news:
- Flint formalizes new 12-member water advisory council
- New panel appointed to oversee Flint water system
- More residents needed for Flint Water System Advisory Council
- Flint has plenty to do after striking deal with state over water system
- Flint, 10 Years Later
- Flint water council chair troubled by EPA's all-clear declaration
- Flint EPA NEJAC opinion
Contact Us
Have questions or concerns about Flint's water system? We're here to help. Please send us an email, fill out our contact form, or come to one of our meetings!
- wsac@cityofflint.com
- Water System Advisory Council Contact Form
Upcoming Meetings
We plan to hold one more meeting in the 2025 calendar year. We will post the date and time as soon as it is scheduled.
Public Participation
All WSAC meetings are open to the public. We encourage community members to attend and share their concerns or questions about Flint's water system. Participating is easy--simply show up and join the conversation! While we always have public comment as a formal agenda item, whenever possible we invite people to participate throughout our meetings. If you can't make it to a meeting in person, you can always email us at wsac@cityofflint.com with any issues you'd like to raise, or fill out our contact form.
Past Meetings
05/14/24
12/13/23
06/14/23
06/14/22
03/21/22
Frequently Asked Questions
WSAC meetings are in-person, but we try to make meeting recordings available whenever possible. Unfortunately, we currently lack the technical support that would allow us to do this consistently. However, sometimes attendees of our meetings stream them on Facebook Live.
The WSAC is a 12-member appointed body. We are currently seeking new members to get to the 12-member threshold.
The Flint City Charter states that the WSAC and other multiple member bodies must be made up of at least 3/4 Flint residents. WSAC members come from diverse backgrounds and areas of expertise. No specific qualifications are required for council membership beyond some experience with the Flint water system and a committment to WSAC's work.
The city charter states that membership on multiple member bodies is not to exceed five (5) years. While there is no minimum term of service, we hope that WSAC members will consider serving at least one year for purposes of continuity.
If you are interested in serving on the WSAC, please submit your name, a statement of interest, and a resume (if you have one) to wsac@cityofflint.com. We will reach out to you with more information about the process for becoming a WSAC member. Please note that under the city charter, members must be officially nominated by the mayor and approved by City Council.
The main role of the WSAC is to help facilitate communication between Flint's water utility and Flint residents around water issues. It seeks to collect and share timely, accurate information about water quality, water infrastructure projects, and water affordability. It also shares water-related concerns from the community with city administrators and helps to ensure that those concerns are addressed.
Community Discussions
How can Flint's annual water quality report be improved?
Every year, the City of Flint is required by federal law to send residents a report with water quality data from the previous calendar year. Below, you can find a link to an electronic version of the most recent report. The Water System Advisory Council has been working on recommendations to the city about how these reports can be improved. Please join the conversation by downloading the report through the link below (if you don't already have one!) and letting us know if you have thoughts about the questions underneath the image. You can email us at wsac@cityofflint.com, fill out our contact form, or come to one of our meetings!
How can the report be made more accessible?
- Water quality reports are not always very accessible to the average person. Do you have ideas about how to make Flint's reports more understandable? For example, do you like seeing water sampling data organized in tables or is there a better way to present it visually? Are there sections of the report where more explanation is needed?
What other information would you like to see in the report?
- The city is required by law to put certain kinds of information in the report. However, it has the option of going beyond the requirements. How can the report do a better job of answering the questions you have about water in Flint? For example, the Water System Advisory Council has recommended that the city include a breakdown of how water bill funds are being spent.
Explore further
For comparison, take a look at Detroit's water quality report.
WSAC's initial recommendations for improving the report can be found in this presentation.
How should upgrades to Flint's water system be paid for?
Like many water systems around the country, Flint's water system has many pipes and other components that are old and in need of repair or replacement, and corrosion during the water crisis caused further damage. The water utility is proposing to prioritize two big projects: replacement of the Northwest Transmission Main, a large pipe servicing 600 residents on the Northwest side of the city, and upgrades to the Torrey Street Booster Station, which ensures water pressure for 14,000 residents. The projects are estimated to cost around $30 million. Take a look at the project planning document (PPD) and the options below, and let us know what you think by sending us an email (wsac@cityofflint.com), filling out our contact form, or coming to one of our meetings!
The utility's preferred option: applying for a Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) loan
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- DWSRF loans, which consist of a mixture of federal and state money, have been a popular way to pay for local infrastructure projects since the late 1990s. The DWSRF program is run by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE). EGLE offers DWSRF loans at below market interest rates, and when funds are available, cities can sometimes get part or all of a loan forgiven. Flint has an opportunity to apply for DWSRF loans once per year. The utility was hoping to apply by the DWSRF deadline date of June 1, 2025, for potential project financing in fiscal year 2026, but City Council did not approve doing so, citing cost concerns. If Flint submits an Intent to Apply Form by November 1, 2025, a complete project planning document (PPD) by June 1, 2026, and the project is in the fiscal year 2027 fundable range, a schedule can be negotiated for a potential DWSRF loan. If a DWSRF loan is awarded without principal forgiveness, the PPD linked above estimates that water bills in Flint will have to be raised by 11% to cover the cost of repayment. EGLE has indicated that a project of this scope is unlikely to receive 100% principal forgiveness, although forgiveness of part of the loan is possible.
Other options
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- 1. Do nothing/make minor upgrades. The PPD above points out that without full-scale upgrades the Northwest Transmission Main and Torrey Road Booster Station "will continue to deteriorate due to the age of the system and costs will continue to increase as time progresses for routine maintenance and spot repairs." Additionally, a water main break would be a public health risk affecting hundreds of residents.
- 2. Pay for this project using bonds. The PPD estimates that any bonds issued for this project will need to be paid back at a 4.5% interest rate, as opposed to the 2.2% interest rate offered through the DWSRF.
- 3. Advocate for the state legislature to pass special legislation with grant funding for this project. In 2017 and 2018, the state distributed around $120 million of state and federal money to Flint through the DWSRF program, with 100% principal forgiveness, as part of the response to the water crisis (the state's portion was $20 million). That money was spent on a variety of system upgrades, including lead service line replacements. Some residents feel that the state should cover the cost of this new project, too, given its responsibility for the water crisis and because it is requiring these new upgrades as part of an administrative consent order (ACO). This would require the passage of special state legislation, since the DWSRF program is unlikely to be able to cover the cost with its current level of funding.
Explore further
EGLE's Drinking Water State Revolving Fund website
Summary of DWSRF discussion with EGLE Environmental Manager Eric Pocan at Flint Communications meeting (8/21/25)
Water Resources
Documents & Reports
Videos & Tutorials
Related Links
Questions or concerns about your water?
Call the Flint Department of Public Works water hotline at (810) 766-7202 or sewer hotline at (810) 766-7079. If you'd like us to help with follow-up, email us at wsac@cityofflint.com and let us know you called.
