Great Lakes Aquatic Habitat News
The Newsletter of the Great Lakes
Aquatic Habitat Network and Fund
Volume 10, Number 3 • May-July 2002
Great Lakes Aquatic Habitat NewsThe Newsletter of the Great Lakes
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Scott McEwen
Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council
Michigan’s rural landscape is developing rapidly. In the absence of statewide zoning regulations, riparians with homes or cottages on Michigan’s streams and rivers can build and develop the land along those streambanks with varying (and sometimes very few) restrictions. Although the Natural Rivers Program has been around for a long time, no stream in Michigan has been proposed for designation since before 1988.
The good news is that there is a renewed interest in getting at least two rivers in Michigan designated as “Natural Rivers”. Plans have been drawn up for the Pine River and the Manistee River. Essentially, a “natural river” designation is about zoning. It regulates the kind of building or development landowners can do within given distances from the streambank. For instance, on the Pine River, the proposed plan calls for a native vegetation buffer of 100 feet from the water’s edge; landowners may not clear-cut the trees and brush, but may trim for a filtered view; new buildings must be set back 150 feet from the water; and lots must be 80,000 square feet (about 1.8 acres) and feature 200 feet of frontage.
Studies have shown that Natural River designation actually improves property values. All in all, “natural river designation is trying to find a balance between resource protection and meaningful use of private property”, said Steve Sutton, Director of the Michigan Department of Natural Resource’s (DNR) Natural Rivers Program.
On May 10, 2002 Ice Mountain Spring Water Company, a division of Nestle Waters North America (formerly Perrier Group of America), announced that its water bottling plant has begun bottling water pumped from its wells in Mecosta County, Michigan. Under current Michigan law, groundwater withdrawals are regulated by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality under the Safe Drinking Water Act, focusing largely on water quality and little on the quantity of water being used.
The quantity of water being pumped from groundwater can have detrimental impacts on surface water resources such as rivers and lakes, as well as affecting the groundwater aquifer itself. Additionally, many relatively small local withdrawals from groundwater or surface water sources for uses outside of the Great Lakes could add up to affect the Great Lakes ecosystem as a whole.
A lawsuit was brought in September 2001 by a citizens group, the Michigan Citizens for Water Conservation, in Mecosta County Circuit Court asking for a declaration that the Perrier water withdrawal project is contrary to Michigan water and public trust law. Terry Swier, President of the citizens group said “the public trust protects the citizens rights in these waters for fishing, boating, swimming, and survival,” adding “water for pure profit violates the public trust and robs Michigan of its most vital heritage.”
The matter of bottling water and selling it outside of the Great Lakes Basin raises an important issue for the protection of the waters of the state of Michigan and the Great Lakes in the future. The Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council believes that it is important for the state of Michigan to develop a comprehensive water use policy that considers both the quality and quantity of water being used for any purpose, and promotes conservation of our precious freshwater resources.
For more information about Michigan Citizens for Water Conservation’s (MCWC) lawsuit, see MCWC’s website at www.saveMIwater.org.
A video entitled “Water Wars; the battle against Perrier in Michigan”, depicting MCWC and other groups in the “David and Goliath” fight against Perrier is available from Eartha Melzer at 231-942-9296 or earthaontheroad@yahoo.com.
| Scott McEwen Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council Serving as Hub for Michigan 426 Bay Street Petoskey, MI 49770 (231)-347-1181 (ext 114) (231)-347-5928 (fax) Email: scott@watershedcouncil.org Website: www.watershedcouncil.org |