The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced Monday, May 19, that a nearly decade-old emergency order on the city of Flint's drinking water standards had been lifted.

Volunteers distribute bottled water to help combat the effects of the crisis when the city's drinking water became contaminated with dangerously high levels of lead in Flint, Michigan, March 5, 2016.

Flint’s water problems began in 2014 when, in an effort to save money, the city began drawing drinking water from the local river; improperly treated river water damaged the city’s pipes.