Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder says he'll drink filtered Flint water for 30 days to prove it's safe

After encouraging the people of Flint to begin drinking tap water using a filter, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder was asked by residents: Would you drink this water yourself?

He said on Monday that he’ll commit to drinking and cooking with filtered Flint tap water for thirty days to prove to skeptical locals that it’s safe. Snyder visited a home which had tested for high lead levels, and took 5 gallons of water from the tap with a filter attached to it.

“One of the things I thought would be helpful, because people asked me about drinking the water, that’s why I said I want to go out and drink filtered Flint water,” Snyder told The Detroit Press.

The governor’s office says that state, federal, and independent water quality experts have cleared the tap water for drinking with a filter.

It’s been three months since President Obama declared a federal emergency over dangerously high lead levels in Flint’s water. Bottled water and filters were distributed by state and federal agencies, and residents have had blood tests to check whether they’re likely to have serious health problems from the water.

Snyder has been called on to resign since the crisis came to light late last year. In 2014 under Snyder’s leadership, Flint’s water source was switched from Lake Huron to the Flint River as a cost-saving measure. The water from the Flint River was so corrosive that it leached lead from the city’s aging pipes, infecting the water supply. The governor has apologized, but has repeatedly refused to resign.