U.S. Water News Online
LANSING, Mich. -- Democratic lawmakers and the Republican administration of Gov. John Engler appeared ready for a knockdown fight over how best to regulate water withdrawals in Michigan.
State environmental officials have issued a proposal to strengthen state review of water withdrawals in the state. That came just hours after several Democratic lawmakers held a news conference with environmentalists to unveil their own legislation on how to do the job.
The controversy over water withdrawal in Michigan was prompted in large part by the Perrier Group of America Inc.'s plan to annually withdraw millions of gallons of Michigan spring water for its Mecosta County bottling plant.
The company's $100 million water-bottling plant will initially pump an average of 150 gallons of water per minute, or 78.8 million gallons per year. As the plant expands, it will pump an average of 500 gallons per minute, or 262.8 million gallons annually, company officials said.
Perrier officials have said they support Michigan having a law in place regulating water withdrawal.
The administration proposal, issued by Department of Environmental Quality Director Russell Harding, calls for more detailed analysis of the effect of withdrawals on groundwater when withdrawal applications are made.
Now, water withdrawals are regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act, which focuses more on the effects on public health than the effects on the water supply.
Under the DEQ proposal, the agency would use a two-tiered permitting system for proposals to withdraw more than 70 gallons a minute, or about 36.7 million gallons a year.
The proposal calls for automatic permits when the state has good hydrogeological data and finds nearby wells won't be affected by the withdrawal. But if the information isn't available or wells would be affected, the company applying for the withdrawal must provide data showing no harm will be done.
``Abundant groundwater is essential to Michigan's high quality of life,'' Harding said. ``This protects the resource without unduly burdening homeowners and industrial users.''
The Democratic legislation, to be introduced near the end of the year, would urge Great Lakes states and Canadian provinces bordering the lakes to implement an agreement governing water withdrawals and emphasize that water control belongs at the state and local level.
A companion bill would prohibit tax breaks and other subsidies for companies that bottle water in the Great Lakes basin.
A third proposal would attempt to strengthen state water policy to safeguard the quality and quantity of Michigan's fresh water and require companies to assess the impact of water withdrawals.
State Rep. Julie Dennis, who called Michigan's water resources ``liquid gold,'' said the Democratic plan goes further than the administration's because Michigan communities deserve the right to decide how their water should be used.
But the Muskegon Democrat added agreement was possible. ``I would love to see bipartisanship on this,'' she said.
Harding, however, shunned the Democratic plan.
``This doesn't go as far as I thought they'd like to go,'' Harding said. ``What I see and hear doesn't tell me much. We're going to do our own thing.''
Sen. Ken Sikkema, a Grandville Republican who chairs a task force looking into Great Lakes issues, has said the panel is likely to propose a plan to protect Michigan's aquifers when it issues its report later this year.
Also Thursday, U.S. Rep. David Bonior of Mount Clemens, a Democratic candidate for governor, asked the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to study the impact of the Mecosta County plant. He wants the facility halted until a comprehensive study is performed.
``This project sets a dangerous precedent,'' Bonior said. ``We need independent scientists to study the hazards.''
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