In 2014, when Flint was known as just another rust belt city in economic distress, Elin Betanzo was at a training conference with other water systems specialists when she learned that Flint stopped purchasing treated water from Detroit and would start treating water from the Flint River. Learn why this aroused her suspicions and how she recruited her friend and former UMBS cabin-mate, Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, to help investigate a potential public health problem.

Ms. Betanzo will discuss the background of drinking water in Flint and lead in drinking water in general, as well as the major decisions that led to the Flint Water Crisis.

Elin Betanzo is a Senior Policy Analyst at the Northeast-Midwest Institute where she leads the Institute’s Toward Sustainable Water Information Initiative. She received her undergraduate degrees from Carnegie Mellon University and her Master’s degree in Environmental Engineering from Virginia Tech.