We grow up with a certain level of trust in the tap. You turn the handle, the water comes out clear, and you drink it. In the United States, we assume that clean water is a given, a solved problem. But if you dig into the infrastructure reports of major American cities, that confidence starts to crumble. The crisis in Flint, Michigan, wasn’t an anomaly; it was a warning shot.
The reality is that much of our water infrastructure is approaching a century old. We are drinking from pipes laid down when the Titanic was sailing. From lead leaching to “forever chemicals” (PFAS) that treatment plants can’t filter out, the water in your glass might be hiding invisible toxins. As an investigative writer, I looked into the data, and these are five cities where you might want to think twice before skipping the filter.
Jackson, Mississippi: The System Failure
Jackson has become the modern face of America’s water crisis. It isn’t just about what is *in* the water; it is about whether the water works at all. Years of underfunding and aging treatment plants led to a total system collapse where residents had no water pressure for weeks.
When the water does flow, boil notices are frequent. The issue here is reliable filtration and pressure. When pressure drops, groundwater and contaminants can seep into the cracking pipes. It is a stark reminder that infrastructure requires money, and without it, basic sanitation vanishes.
Newark, New Jersey: The Lead Legacy
Newark has been fighting a massive battle against lead. For years, the corrosion control chemicals failed to stop lead from the city’s aging service lines from flaking off into residents’ drinking water. Lead is a neurotoxin; there is no safe level, especially for children…