Brown Drinking Water Persists in Historically Black Florida Community

· Climate · United States

Residents of Whitted, an unincorporated historically Black community of about 520 people in Florida, say their drinking water is sometimes brown, the color of iced tea when poured into a pitcher. Ann Jones, 81, who has lived most of her life there, told Inside Climate News that water from her kitchen faucet runs clear only some of the time. The reporting documents the persistent problems residents face with their water supply in the community. The story adds to a broader pattern of environmental and infrastructure concerns in historically Black communities in the United States.

Why it matters：Access to safe drinking water is a basic public-health and environmental-justice issue, and documented failures in a small community point to the uneven state of water infrastructure across the United States.

Key points

  • Whitted is an unincorporated historically Black community of about 520 people.
  • Ann Jones, 81, says her tap water is clear only some of the time.
  • Residents describe the water as occasionally brown, like iced tea.

Sources (original reporting)

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