LANSING – As part of their comprehensive "Great Waters, Great Michigan" plan, House Democrats today passed a package of bills that will protect the Great Lakes, Michigan's 11,000 inland lakes and streams and the good-paying jobs that they generate, maintaining Michigan's status as a top destination for boaters, anglers and other tourists.
"Our water is not just a commodity to be bought and sold," said State Representative Mark Meadows (D-East Lansing). "Michigan's water is part of our state's history and its heritage. This plan says in no uncertain terms that Michigan's most precious natural resource belongs to its residents, not big businesses."
The parts of the "Great Waters, Great Michigan" plan that passed today will:
- Allow local governments to request a review from the Department of Environmental Quality if they feel a water withdrawal may harm other water users.
- Promote water conservation practices by large-quantity water users, such as municipalities and utilities.
- Establish a Water Conservation Advisory Council that will make recommendations to ensure sound water policies are enacted in Michigan.
- Protect Michigan's unique and popular trout streams by preventing withdrawals that would cause more than a 1 percent reduction in the stream's thriving fish population.
Other parts of the package passed by the House last week will effectively ban the diversion of water outside the Great Lakes basin by ratifying the Great Lakes Basin Water Resources Compact; toughen water bottling standards by lowering the threshold that triggers an environmental review of withdrawals from 250,000 gallons per day to 200,000 gallons per day; and raise the fines for water-use violations from a maximum of $5,000 per day to $10,000 per day.
The House plan provides much stronger protections for the Great Lakes and Michigan water than the plan passed by the Republican-controlled Senate.
"The unique cold water streams of Michigan play a vital role in our economy," said State Representative Gary McDowell (D-Rudyard). "They are huge draws for anglers and others tourist from throughout the Midwest who pump dollars into our local communities. This plan will keep our waters healthy and bring jobs and investment into our state."