We are proud that 2021 marked our 10th year of partnering with you to protect the Great Lakes. FLOW now enjoys a solid foundation built from the work we have accomplished together with you and many other supporters and allies to protect the Great Lakes through application of public trust principles, It is work that… Read more »
On World Water Day, it’s worth asking this question: Why is it that we only begin to understand what we have at the very moment it is gone? This question defines the crisis around water in the Great Lakes. The stories and statistics around water poisoning, pollution, and scarcity are staggering. Recent water disasters have been all too common: the Flint lead-in-drinking water tragedy, the thousands of residential water shutoffs in Detroit and beyond, the 2014 toxic algal bloom that shut down the Toledo drinking water system, and the countless other community water supplies poisoned from chemical contamination from PFAS and other pollutants. Time and time again, the reaction from residents is: How could this have happened in America?
In February 2020, a state team led by the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) began an investigation into the possibility of PFAS contamination spreading in groundwater north of Cherry Capital Airport and the U.S. Coast Guard Air Station to drinking water wells in the nearby Pine Grove neighborhood of East Bay Township, near Traverse City. But state officials did not tell residents of 18 potentially affected homes of the investigation until October 2020, when they confirmed PFAS in the water of the 18 homeowners’ wells. The homeowners were understandably angry that eight months passed after the investigation started before they were made aware of it. Some might have taken precautions to avoid even the chance of exposure to the pollutants. on her second day in office, Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed her first executive directive establishing the policy that, “Action to mitigate or prevent threats to public health, safety, and welfare always should take precedence over any ill-advised attempt to protect the reputation of a department or agency, manipulate public perception, avoid political backlash, or engage in defensiveness, self-justification, or insular conduct.” The State fell well short of the Governor’s standard when it failed to inform residents of the Pine Grove neighborhood, early and transparently, about the possibility of PFAS in their well water.
By Liz Kirkwood, Executive Director, and Mike Vickery, Board Chair Being in, on, or near water brings us into balance, restores clarity, and grounds us in understanding what matters most. Water is life. These elemental connections to water and nature were profoundly important to all of us in the tumultuous year of 2020, as the… Read more »
Governor Gretchen Whitmer on Thursday released a proposed state budget for the fiscal year starting October 1 that includes $385 million in new funding for clean water priorities, as well as funding for emergency contaminated site cleanup and energy projects. “The Governor’s budget would make some significant investments in Michigan’s vital water resources,” said Liz… Read more »
It’s natural to stand on the shoreline of one of the Great Lakes and admire their vastness and majesty. But another abundant water resource in the basin is out of sight and rarely commands such appreciation. That’s groundwater. Between 20-40 percent of the water budget of the lakes (the total water flowing in and out of the system) originates as groundwater. Without this unseen water, the Great Lakes would be dramatically different from those we know. Strengthening public appreciation of and public policy protecting groundwater is a fundamental part of Great Lakes stewardship.
On Tuesday, January 19, from noon to 1:30 pm, the League of Women Voters/Grand Traverse Area will host FLOW senior policy advisor Dave Dempsey discussing the topic of toxic chemicals present in our groundwater. Almost 50 years ago, Michigan suffered one of the worst human exposures to a toxic chemical in its history when PBB accidently entered the state’s food supply. In more recent years, our exposure to PBDEs and PFAs has raised the question of whether we have learned anything about the dangers persistent chemicals present to human health.
By Jim Olson With the New Year upon us, we are taking a moment at FLOW to look back at 2020 and forward to 2021, the start of our 10th year of partnering with you to protect the Great Lakes. This is a really exciting time. FLOW now enjoys a solid foundation built from the… Read more »
Throughout 2020, FLOW has been remembering and reflecting on one of the most consequential years for the environment in America’s history. The 50th anniversary of the first Earth Day — the year in which the U.S. EPA was created, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore was authorized, the Michigan Environmental Protection Act became law, and much more — made 1970 a year to remember.
In nature, there is often a long time between the planting of seeds and the ripening of fruit. In 2020, the public policy and action seeds FLOW began planting a decade ago turned into wins for the people of Michigan, public water, and the paramount value of our environment.
