Matthew Dolan

Detroit Free Press

DETROIT — Walmart, Coca-Cola, Nestlé and PepsiCo announced Tuesday the donation of about 176 truckloads of water to help people affected by the water crisis in Flint, Mich.

The donation includes providing up to 6.5 million bottles of water for more than 10,000 Flint students through Dec. 31, according to company executives.

Bilal Tawwab, Flint Community Schools superintendent, said in a statement that the city was grateful for the support.

“With their generous support, district students will have access to clean drinking water, and more importantly, the ability to focus on their education,” said Tawwab.

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The effort is the latest push in a growing campaign to aid the beleaguered city of 99,000, who have been advised to drink bottled water or use filters on their tap water to avoid consuming water that is contaminated with lead.

Flint stopped buying water from the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department in April 2014 and began using the Flint River after the city decided to join the Karegnondi Water Authority in a move considered more cost-effective for the financially ailing city. It needed an interim water source because construction on the water authority project will not be complete until later this year.

After failing to answer alarm bells sounded by outraged citizens who complained of discolored and foul-smelling tap water and scoffing at reports of a spike in blood-lead levels in Flint children, Michigan acknowledged a problem in early October and helped Flint reconnect to the Detroit system. But officials say a danger persists because of damage to the water-distribution system by the corrosive Flint River water and that residents still shouldn’t drink the tap water without using a lead filter.

How Flint's water crisis unfolded

Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder declared a state of emergency Jan. 5 and mobilized the Michigan National Guard to help with water and filter distribution on Jan. 12. On Jan. 16, President Obama declared a federal state of emergency in Flint. He announced $80 million in financial aid for water infrastructure projects in Michigan — and some of that money is likely to be used to help Flint.

The state Department of Environmental Quality admitted that it failed to require corrosion-control chemicals in the water after the switch in sources. Many also blame local officials and federal environmental experts for their roles in the poorly treated water. The city was under the control of a state-appointed emergency manager at the time.

AT&T on Monday announced a contribution of $50,000 to support response efforts of the Community Foundation of Flint and the Flint Child Health & Development Fund. Many entertainers and musicians also have announced campaigns in support of Flint, including Eminem, Big Sean, Meek Mill and Pearl Jam.

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Jimmy Fallon donates $10,000 to Flint, Mich.

In addition to the water donation, Walmart and its corporate partners are encouraging others to support the Flint community by working with Good360, an online site where non-profits operating in Flint are listing their needs. Walmart and partners said they will continue to work closely in the Flint community and are encouraging the public to get involved by visiting www.good360.org/flint to make donations that will go directly to local non-profits.

“PepsiCo believes that access to safe water is a basic human right,” said Tony West, executive vice president, PepsiCo Government Affairs, in a statement.

Walmart stores in the Flint area have been helping supply water and water filters to the community since the summer. Walmart has three super centers and two Sam’s Club locations in and around Flint, representing about 1,000 employees.

“It’s a pretty personal issue for all of us,” said Kathleen McLaughlin, president of Walmart’s foundation and senior vice president of sustainability.

Tuesday’s commitment represents a broader recognition of the long-term struggle Flint faces as it recovers from the water disaster, McLaughlin told USA TODAY.

“As things really started to worsen and we started to understand the magnitude of what occurred here and what's going to have to happen to recover, we felt we needed to do something more,” she said.

McLaughlin said the 6.5 million bottles of donated water will be enough for the students to have a couple of bottles of water a day for the rest of the year. Walmart also is working with the school district and local officials to make sure the city is equipped to recycle so many plastic bottles.

“Nestlé Waters is proud to team up with Walmart to expand our ongoing work to provide clean, safe bottled water for Flint residents,” said Cameron Lorrain, plant manager for the Michigan-based Ice Mountain and Nestlé Pure Life brand operations in a statement.

“This critical initiative to provide bottled water to the two Flint school districts builds on our heritage of supporting disaster relief work around the world," said Lori George Billingsley, vice president of Community Relations, Coca-Cola North America, in a statement.

Walmart will donate about 2 million bottles while Coke, Pepsi and Nestle will each donate about 1.5 million bottles.

Contributing: Paul Egan, Detroit Free Press; Hadley Malcolm, USA TODAY. Follow Matthew Dolan on Twitter: @matthewsdolan

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