Stephanie Smith, left, Jimmie Thompson, center, and Otis Ross, right, share a laugh in-between residents coming to get water at Prince of Peace Baptist Church Wednesday, June 22, 2016 in northwest Flint. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday the church gives out water for free from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. "My brother lives in Atlanta. I try to tell him he doesn't realize how bad the water crisis is here," Ross said. "You can't imagine it until you get here." (Mark Felix/The Flint Journal-MLive.com via AP) LOCAL TELEVISION OUT; LOCAL INTERNET OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT
Stephanie Smith, left, Jimmie Thompson, center, and Otis Ross, right, share a laugh in-between residents coming to get water at Prince of Peace Baptist Church Wednesday, June 22, 2016 in northwest Flint. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday the church gives out water for free from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. "My brother lives in Atlanta. I try to tell him he doesn't realize how bad the water crisis is here," Ross said. "You can't imagine it until you get here." (Mark Felix/The Flint Journal-MLive.com via AP) LOCAL TELEVISION OUT; LOCAL INTERNET OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT Credit: Mark Felix

Detroit — Filtered tap water is safe for everyone in Flint, Mich., the federal government said Thursday, lifting a recommendation that pregnant women, nursing mothers and children under 6 drink only bottled water to avoid lead exposure.

The announcement was based on tests of filters that have been distributed for months for free by the state of Michigan. The Environmental Protection Agency said the filters remove or reduce lead to well below the action level of 15 parts per billion, although no lead is considered safe. Some samples from high-risk areas in Flint have been coming back at less than 1 part per billion.

“It is encouraging news,” said Mayor Karen Weaver, who still wants all lead-tainted plumbing replaced.

Flint used the Flint River for 18 months, but lead leached from old pipes at homes because the water wasn’t treated to control corrosion. Although the city switched water sources last fall, there still is lead in the system.

Officials have been telling most Flint residents that it’s OK to drink filtered tap water, including President Obama, who sipped from a glass during a visit in May. Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder said he drank filtered water from a Flint home for more than 30 days.

“People using filtered water instead of bottled water can relieve a significant burden on themselves because they don’t have to deal with transporting and storing it,” Snyder said.

Trust still is a hurdle in Flint, 60 miles north of Detroit, where people were repeatedly told that water from the Flint River was safe before Snyder and his environmental regulators last fall finally acknowledged that the system was poisoned by lead.