Bass Lake in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore (Photo/Kelly Thayer) Editor’s note—See FLOW’s additional coverage of the Clean Water Act and the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement here: Clean Water: It’s About Holding Officials Accountable — October 18, 2022 The State of Water Quality in Michigan — October 13, 2022 Where Do We Stand on the… Read more »
Fresh water and aquatic plant life shine on October 2, 2022, in southeastern Grand Traverse County, Mich. (Photo/Kelly Thayer) When Ohio’s Cuyahoga River caught fire in 1969—the same year Michigan’s Rouge River blazed because of waste oil—America had had enough of worsening water pollution. Public opinion strongly favored tougher laws and enforcement to protect water…. Read more »
The Supreme Court Building in Washington, DC. Less than two weeks before the 50th anniversary of the Clean Water Act, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments Monday (click for audio or transcript) in a case that could gut the authority of the federal government to protect streams and wetlands. The case—Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency—involves… Read more »
Editor’s note: FLOW supports the consideration of newly introduced legislation to control septic system sewage and looks forward to helping strengthen the bill’s provisions to ensure the strongest possible protections for public health and public waters. Please read the article, and use the links to contact the bill’s co-sponsors using the information below to express… Read more »
Editor’s note: During SepticSmart Week, which runs through Friday, FLOW is sharing updates on efforts to protect fresh water and public health from uncontrolled septic system waste, as part of an annual educational campaign that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency launched a decade ago, with the State of Michigan, other states, communities, and organizations, including… Read more »
Image courtesy of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Editor’s note: During SepticSmart Week, which runs through Friday, FLOW is sharing updates on efforts to protect fresh water and public health from uncontrolled septic system waste, as part of an annual educational campaign that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency launched a decade ago, with the State of… Read more »
Photo of the Au Sable River by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. In the Great Lakes State, we sometimes take water for granted. We turn on the tap and expect our drinking water to be safe. We wade or swim in a lake and assume it is clean. And we flush a toilet believing… Read more »
We all know that the Great Lakes are a magnificent freshwater system, the largest in the world. But are you intimately familiar with their unique characteristics and dimensions? The 10 true-or-false questions below give you an opportunity to determine whether you are a Superior Scholar or a mere landlubber. How will you do?
Water flows through a single cycle from air to surface water and groundwater, or from the land to lakes and streams, evaporating and beginning its journey all over again. But environmental law and policy often overlook an entire arc of the cycle, neglecting to include groundwater, and as a result, exposing the public to health risks and exposing ecosystems to degradation.
Editor’s Note: FLOW today resubmitted the following formal comments from February to the Mackinac Straits Corridor Authority in advance of the Authority’s 10 a.m. public meeting in St. Ignace regarding Enbridge’s oil tunnel proposed through public bottomlands in the Straits of Mackinac. See the Authority’s June 7, 2022, meeting agenda, and learn about the opportunity… Read more »
