Halting Enbridge Energy’s oil pumping beneath the Straits of Mackinac was key promise in the Democratic campaigns of Michigan’s next governor and attorney general. Can they deliver?
Michigan Environment Watch
Michigan Environment Watch examines how public policy, industry, and other factors interact with the state’s trove of natural resources.
Great Lakes News Collaborative
Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television, The Narwhal and Michigan Public work together to report on the most pressing threats to the Great Lakes region’s water. This independent journalism is supported by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. You can find all of the collaborative’s stories here.
Shockwave
The Great Lakes region is in the midst of a seismic energy shakeup, from skyrocketing data center demand and a nuclear energy boom, to expanding renewables and electrification. In 2026, the Great Lakes News Collaborative will explore how shifting supply and demand affect the region and its waters. Read the series here.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Lead levels drop in Michigan kids after Flint spike. But so does testing.
With map: After a one-year increase, blood lead levels are down again in Michigan. But is it because fewer people are getting tested now that the Flint water crisis has faded?
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
In Northern Michigan, tribes protesting Line 5 hunker down for winter
Representing Native Americans across Michigan and beyond, a small group of “water protectors” say they plan to camp out near the Straits of Mackinac until Enbridge Energy’s oil pipeline is shut down.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Michigan tribes say Line 5 pipeline tunnel plan ignores treaty rights
Grand Traverse Band says ‘we were here first,’ but have been ‘pushed aside and treated as second-class people’ during debate and discussion about the controversial oil pipeline.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Great Lakes drownings peaked in 2018. And the year’s not over.
A safety advocacy group has tracked 728 Great Lakes drownings since 2010, including 105 in the first 10 months of 2018.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Minnesota has fought PFAS for years. Here’s how its plan can help Michigan.
Michigan is planning to sue 3M for manufacturing hazardous chemicals showing up in water systems. Minnesota sued the company years ago and is sharing documents and other information, a top Minnesota regulator says.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Michigan environment roundup: ‘Bee highway’ to the rescue in Detroit
This week’s can’t-miss journalism about Michigan’s natural resources.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Enbridge to build $350M tunnel to protect Line 5 in Straits of Mackinac
Gov. Rick Snyder announces that he won’t seek shutdown of controversial oil pipeline, opting instead for an agreement with its owners, Enbridge Energy, to protect it with a tunnel.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Monarch butterflies need saving in Michigan. Fenton woman does her part.
Climate change, loss of habitat and destruction of milkweed are plunging populations of monarch butterflies, which are vital to the ecosystem.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Michigan groundwater emergency threatens fish, drinking water, way of life
From PFAS to leaking septic tanks and farm runoff, Michigan’s most precious resource – its fresh water – is under assault from a host of threats. A new report says the crisis doesn’t receive the urgency it deserves.