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| From Album 5 |
Many West Virginians have not been using their water since a massive chemical spill tainted their water last month. Despite this, some say their water bills are outrageously high.
The bills, according to the West Virginia Citizen Action Group, are worth more than the credits that West Virginia American Water has offered to people who had to flush their water systems several time since 10,000 gallons of a chemical called Crude MCHM (and potential a few other chemicals) leaked into the Elk River. During those flushes, customers leave their water on for 25 minutes, a process that WVAM says should use a maximum of 500 gallons of water. WVAM has promised a 1,000-gallon credit for residents on their water bills, and a 2,000-gallon credit for small businesses.
But many customers have not yet seen that credit on their bills. The credits, according to WVAM President Jeff McIntyre, are supposed to be included on bills that were sent out Friday.
Charleston resident Patrick S. Lawson Sr., however, sent ThinkProgress a bill he received Friday, with no credit to be found. The bill also showed a meter reading saying he used 600 gallons of water since Jan. 30, which Lawson said is untrue. He has not flushed his water since the 30th, nor has he been drinking or cooking with it. He has limited his showers to twice a week, has done two loads of laundry, and has run his dishwasher twice.
That's one hell of an invisible hand. Literally.
Face it, in 'Merikkka 2014, the citizen gets screwed. Big corporations and government outfits make out just fine thanks.
ReplyDeleteAmerica, what a country.
Stay warm, we may get ice pellets tonight, tomorrow, and tomorrow night here in Alexandria. Snowed here Thursday as I waited for my procedure, was gone before we got home though. Three different times It snowed/iced here this winter so far. Global warming? Global weirding, seem a better term. Wonder how hot summer will be. The heat isn't so bad. It would be 110+ in the shade in SoCal, but here we have the humidity. Makes the heat worse and the cold penetrate.
Global warming doesn't mean an end to winter...it does mean weird stuff, like ice storms in Alexandria while in Sochi the snow and ice are melting. But hey, until it affects their profits, they won't do a godamn thing. Once it DOES affect them, though...
ReplyDeleteWell, fortunately over here it's going to stay above freezing...but good luck up there. Hope your home and especially plumbing stays intact.
Meanwhile there was ANOTHER chemical spill -- well, coal ash spill -- in West Virginia. And I read Pennsylvania is somehow being affected by old Freedom Industries (oh, and the coal ash was spilled by Patriot Coal -- last refuge of a scoundrel, eh?)...
Anyway...time to do some chores over here. Good luck, stay warm...