Michael Gadola

Legal Counsel at Governor's Office / GOV

8

Emails

Mar 2012–Oct 2014

Archive range

8 emails found.

RE: Flint water

Good gravy. First, just to clarify, when Valerie says GM is leaving, she means leaving the Flint water system, not abandoning the City altogether. Second, to anyone who grew up in Flint as | did, the notion that | would be getting my drinking water from the Flint River is downright scary. Too bad the EM didn’t ask me what | thought, though I’m sure he heard it from plenty of others. My Mom is a City resident. Nice to know she’s drinking water with elevated chlorine levels and fecal coliform. | agree with Valerie. They should try to get back on the Detroit system as a stopgap ASAP before this thing gets too far out of control.

Flint water

As you know there have been problems with the Flint water quality since they left the DWSD system, which was a decision by the emergency manager there. Specifically, there has been a boil water order due to bacterial contamination. What is not yet broadly known is that attempts to fix that have led to some levels of chiorine-related chemicals that can cause long-term damage if not remedied (though we believe they will remedy them before any damage would occur in the population). Now apparently the reduced quality is causing GM to leave due to rusted parts. 1 am fairly sure that GM's departure now means the economic rationale for Flint leaving DWSD in the interim while the new intake is constructed has just been eliminated. Moreover, our DEQ has been working with Flint's team to try to address the technical problem, but doing a blend of DWSD water and Flint water, or going back altogether for a year or two while the new lake intake is constructed, have not really been solutions on the table. Now we are getting comments about being lab rats in the media, which are going to be exacerbated when it comes out that after the boil water order, there were chemicals in the water that exceeded health-based water quality standards. I 105 xxxEND_PAGE:treasury01_b22_3033_3514_396 think we should ask the EM to consider coming back to the Detroit system in full or in part as an interim solution to both the quality, and now the financial, problems that the current solution is causing. That additional revenue would also help DWSD, obviously, and the infrastructure is already in place, so this could be implemented quickly. I am not sure who is the best person to initiate that conversation with the EM, but I see this as an urgent matter to fix. Valerie P.S, Note:I have not copied DEQ on this message for FOIA reasons. I have sent them the below message from the Senator's office and had conversations with them re making sure to brief the EM directly on the water quality issues.

Agenda

All, Attached is tomorrow’s agenda. | have also re-attached both memoranda for your convenience. Regards, David M. Ottenwess xxxEND_PAGE:deq24_b694_1810_1811_1 OTTENWESS, ALLMAN & TAWEEL, PLC 535 Griswold, Suite 850 Detroit, MI 48226 (313) 965-2121 ext. 211 (313) 965-7680 This e-mail contains PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION intended only for the use of the Individual(s) named above. If you are not the intended recipient of this e-mail, or the employee or agent responsible for delivering this to the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any dissemination or copying of this e-mail is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, please immediately notify us by telephone at (313) 965-2121 x211 or notify us by e-mail at Also, please mail a hard copy of the e-mail to Ottenwess, Allman & Taweel, PLC, 535 Griswold, Suite 850, Detroit, MI 48226 via the U.S. Postal Service. We will reimburse you for all expenses incurred. ATTENTION: IRS CIRCULAR 230 DISCLOSURE: Pursuant to Treasury Regulations, any tax advice contained in this communication, including any attachment(s) is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used or relied upon by you or any other person, for the purpose of (i) avoiding penalties under the Internal Revenue Code, or (ii) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any tax advice addressed here. xxxEND_PAGE:deq24_b694_1810_1811_2