Flint's water woes, highlight the consequences of neglect, inadequate monitoring, and poor water infrastructure. However, Flint is not an isolated case; many other cities both nationally and globally face similar challenges.

It is not unusual for governments to forgo investing in critical water infrastructure, or to fail to take changing environmental conditions and/or growing consumer markets into account. For many places, such as Flint, Mumbai, Johannesburg and Sao Paulo, the consequences of this lack of foresight results in decrepit water systems that are inadequate, leaving consumers with a water supply that is unsafe to drink, if they have water at all.

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Because governments around the world have procrastinated on taking action to combat climate change, countries now have to drastically reduce their greenhouse gas emissions if we have any hope of preventing environmental collapse. Many are still reluctant to do so. Droughts are increasing in their frequency and intensity, and are occurring in all regions of the world, threatening crops and drinking water supplies. In India and the US Midwest, depleted aquifers threaten crops, and thus food production. In Lake Taihu, China, and Lake Erie, US, nutrient pollution gives rise to toxic algal blooms that impacts the water quality of communities that depend on these lakes for their drinking water, often resulting in residents not being able to use water from their taps.

A toxic algal bloom in Lake Taihu in 2007 left millions of residents in Wuxi, China without water for several days — a logistical nightmare considering the amount of residents affected. With water resources already under severe pressure, when water infrastructure breaks down, the fallout can be swift and crippling to society. Sao Paulo recently suffered the consequences of a severe 2-year drought, exacerbated by inadequate and poorly maintained water infrastructure, leaving Brazil's largest city — with a population of 20 million inhabitants — facing the prospect of having no water. The South African capital of Johannesburg suffered a similar fate in November 2015, when taps in some areas in the city ran dry.

To prevent potential disaster, aging water systems need to be maintained, upgraded, and in some cases expanded. But this is costly, and many cities simply don't have the budget to undertake the much needed upgrades. Yet, while governments may aim to save operating costs, the consequences of not maintaining and upgrading water infrastructure to keep up with consumer demand and changing environmental conditions can be more costly to rectify than the any savings attained in their efforts to cut costs.

Consumers can take measures to ensure they have a steady supply of safe drinking water at all times. Firstly, consumers can take measures to ensure a backup supply of water should the taps run dry by installing rainwater tanks to catch and store rainwater during the rainy season for use in the dry season. Secondly, investing in a good quality drinking water filter that can purify water will ensure that both water flowing out the tap, or stored rainwater used for drinking in times of drought, is free from harmful pollutants, ensuring that there is always a safe supply of drinking water on hand.