Search Results for: groundwater

PFAS-tainted Groundwater Emergency Threatens Traverse City Residents’ Wells and Well-Being

November 5, 2020

News has just broken that drinking water wells in East Bay Township, just a few blocks from Traverse City’s eastern edge and just across US-31 from East Grand Traverse Bay, may be contaminated by PFAS — what is being called, the “forever chemical.” My well. My neighbors’ wells. Our wells… our water… the water that many in my neighborhood use for drinking and cooking; the water that our households consume, writes FLOW special contributor Holly Wright.

During Septic Smart Week, Let’s Protect our Groundwater

September 14, 2020

Most Michiganders don’t know that September 14-18 is Septic Smart Week — and that an estimated 130,000 septic systems in our state are failing. In many cases that means sewage and associated microorganisms are reaching groundwater, lakes and streams.

Groundwater and Green Ooze

August 10, 2020

When a mysterious green slime crept onto the shoulder of I-696 in Madison Heights last year, it shouldn’t have been a surprise at all.  Instead, it was the inevitable result of state policies since 1995 that have treated Michigan’s groundwater as an essentially worthless resource.  And Michigan residents have been paying both in tax dollars and health risks ever since.

The Drinking Water Source We Forget: Telling the Story of Groundwater

May 6, 2020

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.

Michigan’s Ottawa County has a Groundwater Conundrum

March 18, 2020

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.

Recognizing Our Symbiotic Relationship with Groundwater

March 18, 2020

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.

Cherish the Groundwater Under Our Feet

March 9, 2020

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.

Groundwater Should be Treated as Priceless, Not Worthless

February 19, 2020

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.

Michigan Groundwater Expert Distills Lessons of a Career

July 16, 2019

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.