密歇根新闻广播 对环保署处理弗林特水危机的批评

 

A report by the EPA's Inspector¹ General blames "management weakness" for delays in the federal agency's response to the Flint, Michigan water crisis.

Those delays may have prolonged the exposure Flint residents had to lead and other contaminants in their drinking water.

It wasn't long after the city of Flint's drinking water source was switched in April of 2014 that city residents started complaining about smelly, discolored water pouring from faucets².

An audit³ released Thursday points the primary finger of blame at state regulators who failed to ensure the city was properly treating its drinking water.

But the audit also finds fault with federal regulators, citing communication problems within the EPA and between the EPA and the state that caused federal officials to delay getting involved.

Meanwhile Flint residents continued to drink tainted⁴ tap water for months.

Dayne Walling was Flint's mayor during much of height of the crisis, before he was voted out of office.

Walling says, at the time, he thought the EPA was doing all it could.

"But I now look back, it's scary to read through the timeline and to see what else was happening that wasn't being acted on … what risks were known," says Walling.

The Inspector general's audit recommends several changes aimed at speeding up the EPA's response to public health emergencies.

An EPA spokeswoman says the agency is moving to implement⁵ them.

Virginia Tech professor Marc Edwards helped reveal Flint's drinking water was contaminated with lead. Edwards says he doubts the report will make a difference.

"Unfortunately, I think EPA is pretty much broken right now," says Edwards. "(These) recommendations aren't really going to change anything."

The most recent testing shows the amount of lead in the city's tap water continues to decline. But many city residents still refuse to believe their tap water is safe to drink.

1 inspector   

n.检查员，监察员，视察员

参考例句：

• The inspector was interested in everything pertaining to the school.视察员对有关学校的一切都感兴趣。
• The inspector was shining a flashlight onto the tickets.查票员打着手电筒查看车票。

2 faucets   

n.水龙头( faucet的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Water faucets shall be chrome-plated type with ball valve. 水龙头外表为铬镀层。 来自互联网
• The plumber came that afternoon and fixed the faucets in some minutes. 当天下午，管子工来了，几分钟内便把水龙头安装好。 来自互联网

3 audit   

v.审计；查帐；核对；旁听

参考例句：

• Each year they audit our accounts and certify them as being true and fair.他们每年对我们进行账务审核，以确保其真实无误。
• As usual,the yearly audit will take place in December.跟往常一样，年度审计将在十二月份进行。

4 tainted   

adj.腐坏的；污染的；沾污的；感染的v.使变质( taint的过去式和过去分词 )；使污染；败坏；被污染，腐坏，败坏

参考例句：

• The administration was tainted with scandal. 丑闻使得政府声名狼藉。
• He was considered tainted by association with the corrupt regime. 他因与腐败政府有牵连而名誉受损。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。