Blog posts by FLOW team and guest writers
John Flesher vividly recalls his first up-close encounter with the Great Lakes. He had flown into Michigan the day before and seen Lake Erie from his plane, but it was nothing like stepping onto a Lake Michigan beach that day in August 1989. “The waves were just pounding the shore,” he says, “and I was… Read more »
National Groundwater Awareness Week, which began on Sunday, March 9, is as invisible to most of us as is groundwater itself. Yet groundwater plays an important role in the lives of all Michiganders. Here’s a chance to test your groundwater knowledge, or gain some. Take the test below! The volume of groundwater in the… Read more »
By: Carrie La Seur, Legal Director — Hey there, water lovers. It’s time for a little more plain talk about the mess that is the Pine River of central Michigan. No sooner had it begun to recover from toxic contamination than tens of thousands of cattle moved in upstream. Every year, millions of gallons of their… Read more »
The child who grew up in the natural wonderland of the Traverse City region is now the sage of the environmental community in Michigan. On Wednesday, February 26, FLOW founder Jim Olson, whose legal work transformed both the law and the landscape, turns 80. It’s a milestone that gives Jim the opportunity to look back,… Read more »
Nitrate pollution might not be a familiar term, but it could be affecting your drinking water more than you realize. Nitrates are a naturally occurring form of nitrogen found in soil and water, but human activities, particularly industrial agriculture, have significantly increased nitrate levels in rivers, lakes, and groundwater. This invisible, odorless, and taste-free contaminant… Read more »
Michigan Court of Appeals Affirms Line 5 Tunnel Permit; FLOW Asserts Michigan’s Public Trust Responsibilities Traverse City, Mich.— For Love of Water (FLOW) participated in consolidated appeals challenging a Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) order conditionally approving Enbridge Energy’s application to replace the segment of its Line 5 pipeline under the Straits of Mackinac,… Read more »
By: Carrie La Seur, Legal Director — Stand aside Silicon Valley, the next big tech disruptor might be a giant manure scooper. Why? Because the Great Lakes, the largest freshwater system on Earth, are becoming a sea of livestock excrement. Traverse City is pleasantly distant from the factory farms of central and southern Michigan – but… Read more »
Chelsea Thompson, Legal Assistant Chelsea Thompson, our new legal assistant joined the team in December 2024 with a strong senvironmental sciences background from Alma College. FLOW is a dream job for Chelsea, who has aspirations to go to law school in coming years, to combine her love for the environment and developing strategies for how… Read more »
By Tony Spaniola Tony Spaniola co-founded and co-chairs the Great Lakes PFAS Action Network. He also co-founded the Need Our Water (NOW) community action group in Oscoda, Michigan, and serves on the Leadership Team of the National PFAS Contamination Coalition. PFAS contamination in Michigan was first discovered in March of 2010 in my home community… Read more »
On February 5, Governor Gretchen Whitmer unveiled her proposed executive budget for fiscal year 2026, totaling $83.5 billion, to the House and Senate Appropriations committees. Protecting air, land, and water infrastructure were among her top priorities. The Director of the Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE), Phil Roos stated, “The Governor’s budget proposal… Read more »
