People living in Flint, Michigan, paid more for their water than people living anywhere else in the country, a new study found including during the months the water first became contaminated with lead.
Food & Water Watch, a group that advocates for clean food and water as well as government accountability regarding these issues, released the study this week. According to the report, which was conducted last year, Flint residents paid as of January 2015 an average of $864.32 a year for their water. The average Michigan household paid $323.47.
The study also compared private, for-profit utilities providing water against local governments providing public water and found that, on average, private water systems cost 58 percent more than public ones. But this was not the case in Flint, which uses a public system yet still charges more than the average private bill, which is $500.96 a year. The average rate for a public water system is $316.20 a year.
