Earlier post and copy of Emergency Order.
It appears the Mayor's office engaged in some reductive analysis last week. WAPT followed JJ in reporting the issuance of an EPA Emergency Administrative Order against Jackson's water system a year ago:
Jackson’s water system is once again under the microscope after documents surfaced showing the Environmental Protection Agency issued an emergency administrative order against the city of Jackson over a year ago, detailing serious violations in the city's water system.
The city could’ve faced a hefty fine from the EPA if it failed to correct the violations inspectors found at the city’s water treatment plants.
The EPA threatened to hit Jackson with $24,000 a day in fines if the city failed to correct serious violations of the Safe Drinking Water Act federal inspectors found at the city’s water treatment plants.
The findings are revealed in a letter the EPA wrote Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba after the EPA’s February 2020 inspection of the OB Curtis and FH Fewell plants.
The EPA issued an Emergency Administrative Order which said there was a potential for the drinking water to contain E. coli, human or animal waste and other bacteria because of concerns about how the water was disinfected before it was distributed to customers across the city.
According to inspectors, both water treatment plants were not following proper disinfection procedures to prevent bacterial contamination.
At the JH Fewell plant, one UV disinfection device which detects pathogens in the water was offline for three months.
Inspectors say those devices are supposed to operate continuously.
The EPA told the City of Jackson it had to submit a comprehensive plan which the agency had to approve for how the city would correct violations at the water treatment plants.
The mayor’s office said concerns outlined in the EPA’s order largely stemmed from administrative process gaps. And the public works department has worked hard to address the items within the initial order and is currently working with the EPA to address items within a comprehensive equipment repair plan.
Kingfish note: Administrative process gap? Is what they call malfunctions, neglect, and incompetence now? Let's see what they call a "administrative process gaps."
*Ultraviolet Light Disinfectors don't work for weeks and months at a time. That is what disinfects the water. That is an administrative process gap.
* pH meters don't work. That is an administrative process gap.
* Membranes at water plants are cleaned without proper monitoring equipment. Such membranes filter the water. Staff cleaned the membranes without using the necessary automatic monitoring equipment for pH and chlorine levels. Too much chlorine or improper pH levels can damage the membrane. Unfortunately, Jackson hasn't had the monitors for several years That is an administrative process gap.
* Key instrument technician positions are vacant for over three years. That is an administrative process gap.
* Monitors that regulate the automatic dosing of key chemicals into the water to reduce turbidity weren't calibrated and didn't work. Turbidity is the cloudiness of water. That is an administrative process gap.
The Lumumba Administration kept the EPA order a secret for over a year and when questioned, it says the problems are "administrative process gaps."
Reductive analysis indeed.
28 comments:
You went to a lot of trouble there to remind us, again, that YOU broke the story. I see what you did.
That’s just a shiny, reflective phrase used to keep the stupid people stupid. Fancy words that sound like “it’s not my fault” will keep Jackson electing the same ineffective leaders. If I had been drinking COJ water since February 2020, I’d be on the steps of City Hall DAILY demanding his removal from office.
The citizens of Jackson obviously don’t care if they’re ill-informed and drinking toilet water.
That’s nice and all but but but Fondren is getting a bowling alley! Drinking poo water is all worth it! Suck on that Rankin and Madison!
Any mention of raw boo boo in the report. Usually, administrative process gaps will include raw boo boo.
If the state paid for water, perhaps the administrative process gaps would be in a lot better position.
Show us the work. Equipment and supplies purchased, personel hired and correspondence with the EPA indicating that the city is making progress. Stop with the BS. And, will WLBT or any of the other supposed new outlets in Mississippi be looking to JJ for follow-up since their "reporters" were never educated to ask investigative follow-up questions? I think the Jackson Zoo covers a much larger area, perhaps out to the city limits.
THANK YOU Mr. Kingfish for BREAKING THE STORY.
So, at this time, Sunday, April 11, 2021 circa 20:42 hours:
--Are the UV disinfectors working or not?
--Are the Ph meters working or not?
--Is the automatic dosing equipment working or not?
Oh, dumb ass me, the EPA only requested that the City come up with a PLAN to fix the problems, not actually fix them.
"The EPA told the City of Jackson it had to submit a comprehensive plan which the agency had to approve for how the city would correct violations at the water treatment plants."
I guess, moving forward, we ought to call him Chokwe Antar "the Planner" Lumumba.
Apparently, however, he can't even do that. What a sh*t hole this place is (no pun intended).
Since no fines against the city have been levied, let alone $24,000 per day, it appears that the problems have been corrected. The EPA’s directive was 13 months ago. But this doesn’t fit the “Jackson is terrible” narrative constantly pushed on here by the Pearl residents.
@9:37p- IF the city had done anything corrective, the mayor would have been screaming loud and proud to shut this down.
You are undeniably naive if you don’t believe COVID got in the way of this.
Pearl is NOT ruining Jackson. Jackson is doing that all by its lonesome self.
MDOC, MDHS, etc., are all administrative agencies. So the bribery, corruption, and outright theft that happened at those agencies are also, by definition, gaps in the administrative process.
What's the excuse for sweeping the EPA action under the rug and hiding it from the city counsel?
Money can't fix this.
I've got a big project that the client put on me with a time-line that is absolutely impossible to meet. Looks like I'm sending an email in the morning to address my client's administrative process gap.
I'll update with their response regarding their administrative process gap that they forced on me. Might even include a link to the socialist anthem for them to listen to so they can start their week in proper Jackson fashion.
Waiting for PittPanther to comment as to why this is not Lumumba's fault...
Mayor and his administration put not only the residents of the city but those that work in the city daily health at risk . Simple solution tell the truth and think outside the box on next steps .
The water plants fell apart earlier this year. I proof enough.
Where do you think that list of $47 million projects came from? A December meeting w EPA. Hmm... why was city meeting w EPA in the first place? Want to bet for non compliance? EPA known for moving slow.
3rd World
11:05 - Unless an agency actually creates/writes law or policy, they're all, by definition, administrative. But, by no means are theft, fraud and corruption running rampant only in administrative bodies. They're all three equal opportunity realities.
8:14 , the State pays for water, so why tell lies.
The list was a containment strategy only proffered to buy time and stall further action by the EPA.
There was no plan and there is no plan. There is only rhetoric, misdirection and obfuscation.
I'm just glad we have a Zoo over clean, safe water.
I feel sorry for residents of Byram who are stuck with depending on the city of Jackson for their water because they have no say over who the mayor of Jackson is, but his and his DPW's decisions and deceptions on the water system directly impact their health and quality of life. I hope their leadership is actively looking for ways to free them from the city of Jackson ownership of their water system, even though it will be very expensive to purchase and maintain.
So the mid-March ice storms and its aftermath were basically just used as fundraisers to deal with the EPA action.
I can't help but wonder how much of the "recovery" from the storms was intentional malingering for fundraising purposes, which is a pretty good indicator of what I think of the bloviating Mayor Lumumba.
Wish the news media would pay for an independent analysis of Jackson's tap water to determine what's in it & what progress the city has made to fix the serious operational failures the EPA found in the water treatment system.
I am a lifelong socialist and as radical as they come. But even the Soviet Union maintained sanitation and provided clean water during the entirety of the Socialist Republic. Well, except for during the siege by Nazi Germany. The collapse of Jackson is Cuba tier. All the way down to blaming the failures on someone else.
A modest proposal (with apologies to Mr. Swift).
May I suggest that the JJ readers start a list of His Honor's favorite excuses and catch phrases. The list can be maintained from JJ blog post to blog post.
I suggest we start with:
"Reductive Analysis"
"Administrative Process Gap"
Soliciting further suggestions.
'[any comment], right'?
10:34 - Nobody knows what the hell your question is, but, yes..probably.
"a discussion over process"
2:37 all of us that have been keeping up know exactly what his question is.
Baby Chock has insisted on spending millions over the past couple of years on keeping the zoo 'alive' while he tries to give a contract to a firm that has never run a zoo to manage our fine facility. For $1.5 million. That is $1.5 million (one and a half million dollars) to try to open a zoo in west Jackson so that he could keep a campaign promise) when we have raw boo boo running through people's yards. When we have a sewer system in total violation of damn near every federal regulation there is regarding wastewater. When we have a water system that is also in violation of clean water standards and facing potential millions of dollars in fines (along with, of course, subjecting the residents to serious health hazards).
But - the important thing to our radical new Mayor is the reopening of a zoo - at its present location in order to serve the residents in that part of town.
Forget the health and welfare of the population at large. Forget (although not part of this discussion) the safety of all people in the city with the vastly underfunded police force.
Put the money where it is important!!! Fund the zoo!1! Bring in the so-called experts (who are not licensed to do so) to given them $1.5 million to open the facility back up - to prove a political point rather than to address what is really important.
Sorry you missed the logic of his comment. But - its there, for all those that pay attention and still care.
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