Federal judge finalizes $53M settlement with former Flint water consultant

A federal judge in Detroit has ended litigation against one of the companies that consulted with the city of Flint when lead contamination led to a drinking water crisis 10 years ago. 

U.S. District Judge Judith Levy entered the final judgment Monday for the $53 million settlement reached in February in a lawsuit brought by the state of Michigan and approximately 26,000 individuals claiming Veolia North America, or VNA, contributed to the Flint Water Crisis by failing to properly identify corrosion control treatment issues.

It was alleged that the Boston-based company did not do enough to get Flint to treat its water so that it would be less corrosive inside the city’s lead pipes. That followed the 2014 switch from Lake Huron to the Flint River as the city’s water source, a decision made by emergency managers appointed by then-Gov. Rick Snyder as a cost-saving move. 

VNA claimed it had only been hired to do a one-week assessment on carcinogens, not specifically lead content, and that it has made recommendations to the city about corrosion control.

The $53 million agreed to in the settlement will be distributed among the plaintiffs who were directly impacted by the lead-tainted water, including a significant number of children.  

With the settlement, the state will also dismiss a separate lawsuit against VNA.

The company, in a statement, said the settlement was not an admission of guilt and argued that public officials were to blame for the crisis.

“VNA stands behind its good work in Flint. The only jury who had to consider the facts and hear the truth did not find any evidence to say otherwise” referencing a nearly six-month long trial in 2022, which ended in a mistrial.

“As the facts of the 2022 trial clearly demonstrate, the Flint water crisis was caused by government officials. It is a disgrace that nearly a decade plus since the crisis was set in motion, still no person who was actually responsible has been held accountable,” said VNA’s release. 

Snyder, a Republican who left office in 2019, and eight other high-level officials, were charged in January 2021 in connection with the water crisis.  However, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled in 2022 that a judge lacked the authority to issue the indictments, and all of the charges were later dismissed.  

However, the crisis did result in the largest civil settlement in Michigan history. 

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced in March 2023 a settlement totaling about $626.25 million had been formally approved, with the state ordered to pay $600 million, the city of Flint $20 million, the McLaren Regional Medical Center $5 million and $1.25 million from Rowe Professional Services.

Nessel said the settlement with VNA had finally closed out a chapter for Flint residents. 

“While no amount of money can fully repair the damage caused to the Flint community, these funds will provide additional resources to those directly impacted, especially Flint children, by this preventable crisis,” Nessel said.