EPA Administrator Michael Regan, right, speaks to reporters in November 2021 at the O.B. Curtis Water Treatment Plant, a Ridgeland, Miss.-based facility near Jackson, Miss., about longstanding water issues that have plagued the city. Rogelio V. Solis/AP hide caption
water crisis
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality reported on Wednesday that 332 local water systems across the state, 276 issued boil-water notices to make tap water safe to drink. LM Otero/AP hide caption
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, pictured on Aug. 14, thanked city and county officials on Monday for partnering to expedite a 10-year lead pipe replacement program. Seth Wenig/AP hide caption
A little girl fills two jerrycans with water in the Korangi slum in Karachi. Fetching water is a duty that often falls on very young children. Diaa Hadid/NPR hide caption
St. Joseph, La., a town of about 1,100 people in northern Louisiana. Courtesy of Garrett Boyte hide caption
Along Saginaw Street in Flint, Mich. Mark Brush/Michigan Radio hide caption
Even As Levels Improve, Flint Residents Choose Bottled Water Over Tap
The state says more than 600 pipes have been replaced in Flint, Mich., this year — but 30,000 suspect pipes remain. Bill Pugliano/Getty Images hide caption
Workers inspect an area around storage tanks where a chemical leaked into the Elk River at Freedom Industries' storage facility in Charleston, W.Va., in January 2014. Steve Helber/AP hide caption
Freedom Industries, which owned storage tanks blamed in a January 2014 chemical spill, filed for bankruptcy later that month. The company's facility on Barlow Street is seen on the banks of the Elk River in Charleston, W.Va. Tom Hindman/Getty Images hide caption
Mayor Karen Weaver takes a sip of water at the House Democratic Steering & Policy Committee hearing titled, "The Flint Water Crisis: Lessons for Protecting America's Children." Gabriella Demczuk/Getty Images hide caption