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 An estimated 79.6 billion gallons of groundwater is withdrawn daily, or 26 percent of the water withdrawn in the U.S. From 2010 to 2015, groundwater use in the United States increased by 8.3% while surface water use declined by… groundwater/" title="ReadFACTS ABOUT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 »
Jim Olson, President, Legal Advisor Dave Dempsey, Senior Policy AdvisorLiz Kirkwood, Executive DirectorFLOW (For Love of Water)Office: (231) 944-1568, Cell: (570) 872-4956 Email: Jim@FLOWforWater.orgEmail: Dave@FLOWforWater.orgEmail: Liz@FLOWforWater.orgWeb: www.FLOWforWater.org Michigan Groundwater Emergency FLOW Report Calls for Major Policy Reforms to ProtectThe Drinking Water Source for 45% of Michiganders Traverse City, Michigan – Michigan’s groundwater resources are in… groundwater-emergency/" title="ReadMichigan Groundwater Emergency”>Read more »
“Water Justice Flows Like Water.”[1] Law professor Sprout D. Kapua’ala, borrowing from Martin Luther King, Jr.’s I’ve Been to the Mountaintop speech in 1968 (“justice rolling down like waters”), captures decades of conflict over the streams and waters of Hawai’i, siphoned and dried from a century of withdrawals and diversion ditches cut across the landscape for… groundwater-streams-lakes-economies-quality-life/" title="ReadThe Public Trust Doctrine Percolates into State Courts, Legislators, and Commissions to Protect Groundwater, Streams, Lakes, Economies and Quality of Life”>Read more »
Bob Otwell, FLOW Board of Directors December 2016 Most of us in northern Michigan drink groundwater and use it to bathe. Outside of metro Detroit, the majority of Michigan’s public water supplies along with water in rural homes comes from groundwater. Groundwater also is used to water golf courses and supply the growing thirst of… groundwater-invisible-precious/" title="ReadGroundwater – Invisible but Precious”>Read more »
“Vermont leaders pioneer public trust principles to address systemic pollution and water quantity issues in this century. The MTBE case is groundbreaking, because it demonstrates how the public trust principles advocated and demonstrated FLOW’s projects will work for the Great Lakes and beyond, including addressing the toxic algae and algal blooms in Lake Erie, invasive… groundwater-rutland-herald/" title="ReadGood news about groundwater – Rutland Herald”>Read more »
FLOW (For Love of Water) has developed model legislation to protect water quality, advance water equity, ensure that the waters of the State remain a public resource, and provide communities and water utilities with a steady source of funding to address water affordability and infrastructure needs. The key provisions of the legislation address long-standing, increasingly… 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 »
