Michigan environmental news: State announces $89 million for Detroit, Kalamazoo river cleanup

➡️ State commits $89 million to clean up Detroit, Kalamazoo rivers Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer unveiled an $89-million “Reclaiming the Rivers” program Thursday to address pollution in the Detroit and Kalamazoo rivers, The Detroit Free Press reports. The funds come from a Monsanto PCB settlement secured by Attorney General Dana Nessel and a separate settlement tied to a 2019 Kalamazoo sediment release. $50 million targets Detroit River sediment, $25 million funds Kalamazoo watershed restoration, and $14 million creates a statewide fund. Officials say additional dollars remain available for further projects. 📌 Source: Detroit Free Press

➡️ Michigan backs legal challenge to scrapped carbon standards for power plants A coalition of 25 states and cities, including Michigan, sued the Trump administration’s EPA in federal appeals court in Washington, seeking to overturn its rollback of 2024 limits on power plant greenhouse gas emissions, Reuters reports. New York Attorney General Letitia James led the effort. Michigan’s Dana Nessel warned that added pollution would worsen extreme weather. The coalition argues the agency ignored alternatives and health and climate costs, and says it will also challenge EPA’s handling of existing gas plants. 📌 Source: Reuters via The Detroit News

➡️ Gordie Howe Bridge path sparks boom in Windsor’s Sandwich Town, Detroit’s Delray Less than two months after opening, the Gordie Howe International Bridge’s walking and cycling path is energizing neighbourhoods on both sides of the border. About 20,000 people have used it, according to the bridge authority. Windsor’s Sandwich Town restaurants report record crowds, while Detroit’s Delray eateries and Historic Fort Wayne are seeing visitors multiply. Many Americans apologize to Canadians over Trump-era tensions, and some Canadians say the crossing has temporarily eased their boycott of the U.S. 📌 Source: Windsor Star

➡️ Coal lobbyist’s letter foreshadowed Trump emergency orders on coal plants A previously unreported March 2025 letter from a coal trade group urged Energy Secretary Chris Wright to use emergency powers to block plant retirements, The New York Times reports. The administration then ordered nine units at six plants to keep running, at expected ratepayer cost of hundreds of millions. In Michigan, a federal appeals court this month struck down the order for the J.H. Campbell plant, yet the owner is keeping it open amid five later orders. The Energy Department denies the letter inspired its actions. 📌 Source: The New York Times

➡️ Detroit Zoo tax renewal goes before tri-county voters Nov. 3 Voters in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties will decide Nov. 3 whether to renew the Detroit Zoo’s property tax, first approved in 2008, according to WJBK-TV. The 10-year levy would stay at 0.1 mill, so rates would not rise. Backers say the owner of a $200,000 home would pay about $10 annually, and roughly $8.8 million would be raised initially for upkeep and operations. The millage also supports the Belle Isle Nature Center and school programs. Early in-person voting starts Oct. 24, with statewide races and two proposals also on the ballot. 📌 Source: WJBK-TV

➡️ States take Trump administration to court over weaker gas mileage standards California, Michigan and two dozen other states, cities and counties sued the Transportation Department in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, challenging newly finalized fuel economy standards, according to Reuters. They argue the rules ignore the growing number of electric vehicles and hide roughly $220 billion in forgone fuel savings. The administration says the fleetwide target of 34.9 mpg by 2031, down from 52.5, will lower vehicle costs and boost sales, though it would raise gasoline use and fuel costs over time. 📌 Source: Reuters via USA Today