Outdated federal water laws and chemicals that were approved for industry without assessing for risk leave Ann Arbor and other communities struggling to ward off water contaminants before they foul drinking supplies.
Michigan water protection cost
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Road salt, a stealthy pollutant, is damaging Michigan waters
Rivers and lakes are becoming saltier while law and practice limit effective responses.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Report aims to prepare Great Lakes states for effects of climate change
Climate change is already affecting the Great Lakes. One group is urging Michigan, other Great Lakes states and Canadian provinces to coordinate efforts to make the Great Lakes basin more resilient to those changes.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Join Bridge, Circle of Blue to discuss Michigan lawmakers’ water priorities
On Jan. 25, Bridge Michigan environment reporter Kelly House will moderate a Zoom discussion about the priorities for water in the 2023 Michigan Legislature.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Five fixes for Michigan’s drinking water woes
The Great Lakes News Collaborative asked state and national experts how Michigan could break the cycle of underfunding and poor decision-making that has left water systems across Michigan in sorry shape.
Posted inThe Center for Michigan
Watch Bridge discussion on Michigan’s aging water infrastructure
Bridge Michigan reporter Kelly House and Circle of Blue reporter Brett Walton moderated a Zoom discussion for Bridge readers with three experts about the state and region’s decrepit water infrastructure.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Some MI water systems are overbuilt, underfunded. Are mergers the answer?
Customers get cheaper, cleaner water when communities share the cost of infrastructure. But Michigan’s experience shows how political conflicts and logistical challenges can complicate the math.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Feds’ $1 billion allows Michigan to renew water infrastructure affordably
Michigan is set to receive the federal infrastructure funds over the next five years, significantly boosting its lending capacity. The funds allow more communities to reinvest in essential public works without saddling residents with all the costs.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Rising water rates hurt Michigan’s poorest residents
Data compiled by the Institute for Public Utilities at Michigan State University shows that water prices are climbing quickly — more quickly, until recent price spikes, than most other goods and services.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Short-changing Michigan local governments tied to deteriorating water systems
Towns across Michigan face increasingly desperate choices as they struggle to maintain their infrastructure – many of them with a shrinking number of taxpayers to foot the bill.