Flint water plant needs nearly $60 million worth of upgrades

(01/19/17) - An engineer at the Flint Water Plant says the facility is in need of $60 million worth of upgrades.

It's a plan that could take well into 2019 before the upgrades are completed.

The topic was discussed at a special Flint City Council meeting Thursday afternoon that was cut short when things got heated.

Engineer, Mark Adas, says a panel including representatives with the EPA, DEQ and employees at the water plant have been taking bids from engineering companies to do the work.

They decided on a company who says it will take about three more years to complete the upgrades. Adas say typically this kind of undertaking takes about ten years.

That means, the city's water plant can't treat raw water coming from the KWA pipeline or anywhere else until it's done.

Adas says the money to do the work will come from a combination of state and federal funds.

"It's a big juggling act frankly we are trying to get the most bang for the dollar the best quality we can for every dollar we get in," said Adas.

While the water plant is getting worked on, it's unclear where the city with get it's water. It's possible they could buy it from Genesee County who will be getting it from KWA or continue buying from Detroit.