Why Northeast Mississippi should care about Jackson's water crisis

Sep. 8—Mississippi's capital city is struggling to supply its 160,000 citizens with clean drinking water, prompting emergency declarations from President Joe Biden, Gov. Tate Reeves and Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba.

It could be tempting for people in the hills of Northeast Mississippi to ignore the crisis, which has attracted national and global attention, and comfortably drink water from their own taps. But the water crisis is more than just a local issue. It's a statewide problem.

The city of Jackson is home to the seat of state government, around five universities, a law school, the state's only medical school, the state's largest airport and is often the first town in which visitors arrive when traveling to the Magnolia State.

"The city of Jackson is the living room of the state of Mississippi," Democratic Rep. Zakiya Summers of Jackson told the Daily Journal. "Think about your own home. You may not have your back bedroom neat and tidy whenever you have guests over, but your front room is welcoming because that's the first impression."

The current crisis has a complex history that involves white flight, decades of deferred maintenance and a lack of funds to go toward repairs.

But instead of talking about Jackson's complicated history, let's take a trip down memory lane to see how the state has banded together to help Lee County out in a time of crisis.

In 2014, a deadly tornado ripped through Tupelo's Bristow Acres, Joyner neighborhoods, the North Gloster Street business district and North Green Street, causing millions of dollars in damage and changing the landscape of neighborhoods for years.

Former Gov. Phil Bryant at the time called a special legislative session to ask lawmakers to allocate $20 million in state dollars to help communities get back on their feet after the deadly storms.

The Legislature unanimously agreed to dole out $17 million to communities impacted by the weather, which prompted the somewhat notable image of Bryant, a Republican, embracing former Tupelo Mayor Jason Shelton, a Democrat, over the bipartisan achievement.

A similar thing happened when the Mississippi Gulf Coast was decimated in 2006 by Hurricane Katrina.

Sen. Brice Wiggins, a Republican from Pascagoula, wrote on Twitter last week it initially feels like he's violating his conservative principles by agreeing to let the state "bail out" the city of Jackson over its water issues, but he remembers how it felt in 2006 during Hurricane Katrina.

"I don't forget the state stepping in to help the Gulf Coast after #HurricaneKatrina," Wiggins wrote. "In the end, it's about the safety of Jackson's citizens & its economic viability. Ready to support Jackson w/ a built-in accountability plan."

One can make the argument that a natural disaster is different from the water crisis, but the bottom line is there is a clear history of state leaders banding together to help out regions of the state in times of need.

Of course, Mississippi is also more reliant on federal funds than any other state in the nation, so an argument can be made that the federal government is bailing out Mississippi on an annual basis.

Northeast Mississippi's lawmakers are even starting to come forward supporting the general idea of offering assistance to the capital city to make sure a similar situation doesn't happen again.

"I don't really care about what's happened in the past or whose fault it is," Republican Rep. Sam Creekmore of New Albany said. "I just want it fixed so we don't have to deal with this again in the future."

The bottom line is every corner of the state needs a vibrant capital city. Tennessee would not be successful without Nashville, Georgia cannot be successful without Atlanta, and Texas can't thrive without Austin.

Without a healthy Jackson, there cannot be a healthy Tupelo, Oxford, New Albany, Booneville or Corinth.

More on Mississippi's water crisis from other outlets

Jackson's Black business owners decry the capital city's water problems (The Associated Press)

While local, state and federal officials scramble to restore the city of Jackson's failed water system in the short-term, Mississippi state lawmakers and legislative leaders are meeting privately this week to discuss long-term solutions for the capital city's collapsing system. (Mississippi Today)

Days before the effective collapse of Jackson's water system, the Environmental Protection Agency highlighted a critical failure on the part of the capital city's leaders in pursuing new water operations staff and in implementing an alternative water plan. (The Mississippi Free Press)

Best from the Daily Journal

A meeting between former Gov. Phil Bryant, a Lee County lawmaker and a former agency leader now embroiled in criminal allegations played a role in a Tupelo nonprofit receiving a federal welfare grant the state auditor claims it should have never received.

A legislator from Calhoun County is one of four people who is on the shortlist to become the leader of a state agency that regulates public utilities.

President Joe Biden on Friday announced he is nominating Vicksburg native Todd Gee to serve as the U.S. attorney for the southern district of Mississippi. If confirmed, Gee would take over the federal investigation into federal welfare dollars that Mississippi officials allegedly misspent.

Support our work

Is this newsletter helpful or interesting to you? Forward to a friend so they can stay informed.

If you've received this email and aren't a subscriber, you can sign up for yourself.

In addition to this newsletter, you can always check out our latest reporting on state government here. And if you agree that reliable and probing journalism in our state Capitol is important, you can support us by purchasing a digital subscription.

taylor.vance@djournal.com