Overnight Energy: Filtered Flint water safe to drink, says EPA

EPA: FLINT WATER SAFE, IF FILTERED: The tap water in Flint, Mich., is safe for everyone to drink if it’s filtered, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said Thursday.

The certification means that the lead level after filtering is low enough that vulnerable populations like pregnant women and small children don’t have to drink bottled water.

{mosads}It’s a major step in the right direction for Flint, whose residents haven’t been able to drink tap water since late last year, when it became public that lead levels were dangerously high.

“This is an important step forward for providing a stable water system for the City of Flint,” Tom Burke, head of the EPA’s research office, said in a statement.

“Residents can be confident that EPA’s sampling results correspond with previous tests and are consistent with outside experts’ findings,” he said.

“With the results of this testing, residents can be confident that they can use filtered water and protect their developing fetus or young child from lead,” added Nicole Lurie, head of preparedness and response at the Department of Health and Human Services and the leader of the federal government’s months-long emergency response in Flint.

Flint is still working to rescale its pipes, putting chemicals in the water to stop the lead pipes from leaching into the water.

Read more here.

VW TO PAY $10.2B TO SETTLE EMISSIONS SCANDAL: Volkswagen will spend $10.2 billion to settle claims related to its emissions testing scandal, the Associated Press reported on Thursday.

The company will use the fines to compensate 480,000 owners of vehicles with 2-liter diesel engines, with owners receiving between $1,000 and $7,000, depending on the vehicle’s age.

The AP report was based on a conversation with an unnamed source; neither VW or the EPA would confirm the report with The Hill.

The agreement comes after back-and-forth negotiations between the company and the federal officials who sued VW over the so-called “defeat devices” found last fall to have been installed on 600,000 vehicles.  

The company faces hundreds of lawsuits from consumers, as well, and a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit alleging false advertising.  

The settlement will be officially released next week.

Read more here.

PIPELINE BURSTS IN CALIFORNIA: A pipeline burst near the Pacific coast in California, but it turned out not to be as bad as originally thought.

The oil pipeline released up to 29,400 gallons at the edge of Ventura, Calif., into a ravine. It was near the Pacific Ocean, but firefighters were able to stop the oil from reaching the beach, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The spill’s volume was first reported as up to 210,000 gallons early Thursday morning.

The line is owned by Crimson Pipeline, which has about 1,000 miles of pipeline in California and more in Louisiana. It was carrying oil for Aera Energy.

The incident was close to last year’s oil pipeline spill in Santa Barbara County, in which thousands of gallons of oil leaked into the water and ended up on beaches as far as 100 miles away.

Read more here.

AROUND THE WEB:

A bankrupt coal company missed a tax payment in Colorado, throwing a local community into turmoil, the Denver Post reports.

The Federal Railroad Administration is putting the blame squarely on Union Pacific Railroad for this month’s oil train derailment in Oregon, the Associated Press reports.

BONUS AROUND THE WEB:

Funny or Die presents ” Park Match,” the conservation movement’s favorite new dating app.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

Check out Thursday’s stories …

–Yuengling will improve pollution controls, pay $2.8M fine
-Oil pipeline spills thousands of gallons near California coast
-Report: Volkswagen to pay $10.2B to settle emissions scandal
-EPA: Filtered Flint water is safe
-Heat wave smashes temperature records in Southwest
–Morgan Freeman comes to Capitol Hill to save the sharks
-Oil industry pleads for Arctic drilling option

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