Michigan announces nearly $500,000 in drinking water source protection grants

The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) this week announced 47 grants totaling nearly $500,000 for communities around the state using wells or surface water sources for their drinking water to better protect their water supply systems.

The grants, which ranged from $70,000 for the Lansing Board of Water & Light to $2,200 for Gladwin, will help these cities and towns protect their water sources with matching financial assistance. This is only the second year that grants have been available to communities sourcing their drinking water from surface water, an allowance that allowed Ann Arbor to qualify for $20,000 to develop and implement a Water Intake Protection Plan.

Communities using well sources for their drinking water will use the funding to define the area contributing drinking water, find potential contaminants, and protect the water supply via management strategies and educational outreach.

Some of the largest grant winners were: Lansing, with $70,000; Kalamazoo, with $60,000; Battle Creek, with $40,000; and Delta Charter Township, with $31,899. All told, the 47 grants total more than $494,000.