After the Midland dam failures, lawmakers set aside millions to fix or remove other problem dams but never updated Michigan’s weak dam safety laws. Now the money has run dry, leading some to fear a dam safety ‘déjà vu.’
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
Gretchen Whitmer urges speed, critics want slowdown on Michigan data center
State utility regulators are deciding whether to grant swift approval or conduct a deeper review of a proposed energy contract for the state’s first hyperscale data center. A decision could come within days.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Line 5 tunnel option ‘rushed’ and unsafe, opponents say
Years into its review of a proposal to move Line 5 from the open water of the Great Lakes into a concrete-lined underground tunnel, the US Army Corps of Engineers has added a new option to the mix.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Wolves on Isle Royale switch from moose to beavers. Will it alter ecosystem?
A new study reveals how gray wolves in Isle Royale National Park seasonally alter their habitat preferences to align with beavers’ habitat preferences, a shift that might have implications for the island’s ecosystem.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Invasive earthworms altering soil in UP forests, research shows
Scientists studying the body size and growth patterns of non-native earthworms in the UP’s Huron Mountains say they are disrupting forest ecosystems.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Detroit’s vacant lots have surprising upside: boosting bird diversity
Empty lots in deindustrialized cities like Detroit may contribute to bird species diversity, says a new study by researchers at MSU and Carleton University in Canada. The study recommends that vacant land management in the city takes a balanced approach that considers the needs of both residents and birds.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Michigan data center review looks like ‘rush job,’ Dana Nessel says
During a roundtable Tuesday, the attorney general and allies renewed their calls for a thorough public vetting of DTE Energy’s proposed contract to deliver power to Michigan’s first planned hyperscale data center.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Feds eye new option for Michigan Line 5: No concrete tunnel, horizontal drilling
As it weighs the fate of Line 5, the US Army Corps of Engineers is quietly pitching a major alternative: Rather than moving the pipeline into a concrete tunnel, Enbridge could use ‘horizontal directional drilling’ to place it into a much narrower borehole.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Michigan: We can’t afford to look for all PFAS. Homeowners on their own
State PFAS officials say it’d cost too much money to test enough to determine the culprit behind some contamination sites. When that happens, the state struggles to find how widespread the contamination is and can’t force anyone to pay for cleanup.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Watch: Saving Great Lakes whitefish is a race against time
After months spent writing about the looming collapse of whitefish in the lower Great Lakes, Bridge Michigan teamed up with Detroit PBS to tell the story in documentary form. Here’s how to watch.