In May 2022, environmental advocates and other interested parties gathered in Dearborn to discuss the state of the Detroit River. While a range of issues were on the agenda, the main event was the lagging cleanup of the 3.5 million cubic yards of toxic sediment remaining in the river from the post-World War II industrial era.
Among the impairments that still plague the river are PCB’s and restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption, according to the U.S. EPA’s assessment of the river’s health. PCB’s are potential carcinogens and were banned by EPA in 1979.
The advocates’ message was clear: Federal funds are available for the river cleanup, but they require non-federal sponsors like the state of Michigan to share the cost. And near-term deadlines are looming to access those funds.
Fast-forward to 2024, and little has changed. Federal funds are still available, but Michigan has still failed to provide the financial resources to secure those funds and clean up the toxic sites. Meanwhile, a search for industry entities to provide support continues.
Planet Detroit recently canvassed key actors to determine the status of the process of taking action on the long-overdue remediation of the river.
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Removing the Detroit and Rouge Rivers from the federal list of toxic sites known as Areas of Concern is “one of the top priorities” of the Michigan Environmental Council’s Detroit program, spokesperson Beau Brockett, Jr. told Planet Detroit.
MEC leads a group of 62 entities, including researchers, advocacy groups, and local government leaders who want action on the rivers, according to Brockett.
Brockett said the group has been pushing for Michigan to come up with $100 million, the estimated amount needed to jump-start the cleanup of the $1.47 billion combined price tag for the Detroit and Rouge Rivers. But so far, no sale.
“In years past, Michigan had lots of COVID dollars to spend, but it didn’t spend them on these specific projects. This year was our most concerted, strongest push yet, but the funding was not included in the budget Gov. Whitmer signed,” Brockett said.
The MEC-led coalition has also been making its case for funding with key legislators, Brockett said, especially those who focus on environmental budgets. He did not elaborate on the status of those conversations.
Supportive senators, but…
Three state senators, Stephanie Chang, Erika Geiss, and Darrin Camilleri, are Democrats whose districts border the Detroit River.
Planet Detroit asked if they support state funding for the Detroit River cleanup.
Sen. Chang said she has been aware that federal funds are available and that some state funding was included in the Senate’s version of the fiscal year 2025 budget. But, the funds did not make the cut in the final document.
“While disappointed, we will continue to advocate for this funding priority in the future,” Chang told Planet Detroit.
Sen. Erika Geiss “strongly supports funding to clean up the 3.5 million cubic yards of toxic sediment in the Detroit River,” said spokesperson Nicole Bernard.
The cleanup is essential for various environmental and human health impacts “and for environmental justice concerns,” according to Bernard.
Sen. Geiss looks forward to “working with the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy and my colleagues in the Michigan Senate to incorporate funding in the future and ensure that the Detroit River gets cleaned up and all environmental concerns are remedied,” Bernard said.
A spokesperson for Sen. Darrin Camilleri, whose district touches the Downriver section of the Detroit River, said the senator supports funding in the EGLE budget and has previously worked in an effort to secure that funding.
“We are going to make it a big priority next year,” Camilleri’s spokesperson said.
EGLE inertia?
There is no more important potential advocate for funding for the Detroit River than the state’s Department of Environment Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE).
And EGLE has direct responsibility and authority to work with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Great Lakes office on restoration issues like the Detroit River Area of Concern.
At the time of the 2022 meeting in Dearborn, Planet Detroit asked EGLE’s
deputy director James Clift, if Michigan should make financial investments in Detroit River restoration.
Clift responded saying that “the Detroit River is a vital and iconic Michigan waterway,” but he did not address the funding issue except to say “EGLE must consider the breadth of needs, the greatest risks to the health of Michigan residents, and the processes and partners involved in remediation.”
Planet Detroit asked EGLE for an update on its Detroit River involvement. Specifically, what is the nature of EGLE’s work with the EPA and has the agency made the case for state funding with the legislature.
“EGLE is actively discussing this topic with the U.S. EPA. We have also had and will continue to have multiple discussions with interested state legislators and stakeholders from the region,” said Hugh McDiarmid Jr, EGLE’s communications manager.
McDiarmid declined to characterize the nature of EGLE’s discussions with the legislature related to funding for river restoration saying he hasn’t been privy to the discussions.
The agency will continue to work with local communities to enhance the Detroit River and is evaluating opportunities and investments, McDiarmid said, but he did not provide details.
EPA no longer “bullish”
EPA has made “some progress” toward securing the required non-federal partners for Detroit River remediation according to an agency spokesperson in the regional Great Lakes office in Chicago. But the current efforts are “still heavily in the planning stages,” the spokesperson said.
The agency noted that Michigan did not include funds for the Detroit River in the recently enacted budget but said, “EPA and EGLE are coordinating to find additional funding avenues or other ways that the state can contribute towards sediment remediation in the Detroit River.”
Prior to his retirement in 2022, the director of the EPA’s Great Lakes office, Chris Korleski, targeted completion of management action in the Detroit River by 2030. Management action refers to the necessary work to remediate the toxic sediment in the river. Ongoing monitoring is then required before a site can be removed from the Area of Concern list. Korleski insisted he was “bullish” on that 2030 date.
Planet Detroit asked if the 2030 date is still achievable given the protracted and incomplete progress of finding non-federal sponsors. EPA softened its stance on the 2030 date saying, “we are striving to complete or make substantial progress on the needed actions by 2030,” the EPA spokesperson said.
Teresa Seidel, EGLE’s former director of the Water Resources Division replaced EPA’s Korleski as head of the Great Lakes office.
Back to MEC spokesperson, Beau Brockett. Planet Detroit asked about next steps for the Detroit River’s 62 member advocacy coalition. Brockett declined to speculate but offered this assessment.
“In just three years, almost all that federal money to clean up the Detroit and Rouge Rivers will be spent and southeast Michigan will be stuck with a price tag 10 times greater than what it currently has.”