As is the case with surface water sources of drinking water, those who depend on city or individual wells cannot always count on the water that comes out of their taps to be safe for consumption. In fact, individual wells may pose a greater risk, because there is no routine government monitoring of them for contaminants. Utilities that provide groundwater-sourced drinking water must test and analyze frequently.
In the Great Lakes state, we think of water as abundant, if not inexhaustible. Not far from Grand Rapids and Muskegon, Ottawa County is bordered on the west by the bulging waters of an engorged Lake Michigan. However, over the past 30 years, increasing use of groundwater is causing water shortages and increasing pollution within the groundwater supply.
Over half the U.S. population, including 99 percent of the rural population, relies on groundwater for its drinking water supply. Groundwater is also used in crop irrigation. It may come as a surprise, then, to realize that most citizens are generally unaware of the nature and critical importance of groundwater.
To foster appreciation of groundwater, FLOW is unveiling our groundwater story map. Packed full of information about the environmental significance of this resource, the story map is a window into one of Michigan’s overlooked assets.
Why should we clean up contaminated groundwater instead of sealing it off? Because what we can’t see can come back to hurt us. Almost 40 years ago, contamination in Charlevoix’s groundwater forced the city to switch to Lake Michigan as its drinking water source. Now, Michigan Radio reports, that contamination is threatening health and property values.
Professor David Lusch retired in 2017, after a 38-year career in the Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences at Michigan State University (MSU). Beginning in 1992 with the publication of the Aquifer Vulnerability Map of Michigan, Dr. Lusch helped pioneer the use of geographic information systems for groundwater mapping and management in Michigan. We asked him to offer his views on critical groundwater matters in Michigan.
Over 100 Years of Contamination Groundwater contamination in Michigan reaches back over a century. For example, the Antrim Iron Works in Mancelona in 1910 began discharging residues of chemicals recovered from its charcoal production process to an on-site depression that gradually released wastes to groundwater. Although the plant closed in 1944, extensive contamination lingered for generations. By 1960,… groundwater-policy-history/" title="ReadMichigan Groundwater Policy: A History”>Read more »
What lies beneath? In part 1 of FLOW’s new Groundwater Connection podcast, veteran journalist Sally Eisele seeks out the sounds and science of groundwater Up North in Michigan. Listen in on her conversations with children, scientists, and farmers, and personal reflection.
Michigan is called the Great Lakes state but is a poor steward of the sixth Great Lake, the water lying beneath Michigan’s ground. During National Groundwater Awareness Week March 10-16, FLOW is calling for state-level reforms to strengthen protection of Michigan’s groundwater. The Invisible Resource Groundwater is an immense and invisible resource. The volume of… groundwater-awareness-week-matters/" title="ReadFLOW’s Groundwater Awareness Week: What It Is and Why It Matters”>Read more »
There are an estimated 2.8 million trillion gallons of groundwater, 30.1 percent of the world’s freshwater. An estimated 79.6 billion gallons of groundwater is withdrawn daily, or 26 percent of the water withdrawn in the U.S. From 2010 to 2015, groundwater use in the United States increased by 8.3% while surface water use declined by… groundwater/" title="ReadFACTS ABOUT GROUNDWATER“>Read more »
