Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer awarded more than $14 million Tuesday to help cities across the state clean up their water.
Twenty-eight cities, villages and townships received grants to support lead service line replacement, enhance water affordability plans, or connect homes with contaminated wells to safe drinking water supplies.
In the WVPE listening area, Watervliet received over $113,000 through a Drinking Water Asset Management Grant. Among other things, the city can use that money to assess the condition of its water service system and conduct public education efforts around lead and copper in drinking water.
The grants are part of the MI Clean Water plan, a $500 million investment announced last year to rebuild the state’s water infrastructure.
(Read the full release from Gov. Whitmer's office below.)
LANSING, Mich. -- Governor Gretchen Whitmer today awarded more than $14 million in grants under the umbrella of the MI Clean Water plan to help 28 Michigan cities, villages and townships better ensure safe, clean tap water for residents.
“By making critical investments in our water infrastructure, we can create thousands of good-paying jobs and protect access to safe drinking water and drive down costs for families and communities,” said Governor Whitmer. “The MI Clean Water plan is a game-changer for Michigan and we should continue building on it to replace all lead service lines statewide, tackle toxic contaminants, and lower utility bills for families.”
The grants, issued through the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) support work including replacing lead service lines, enhancing water affordability plans, and connecting homes with contaminated drinking water wells to safe community water supplies.
“The old saying ‘an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure’ is no more evident than in the aging water systems in communities across Michigan,” said EGLE Director Liesl Clark. “Today’s investment will help ensure that these towns and cities maintain safe, reliable water for Michigan residents into the future.”
The MI Clean Water plan is an $500 million investment announced by Governor Gretchen Whitmer last year to rebuild the state’s water infrastructure to help provide clean, affordable water to Michiganders through investments in communities.
It addresses water infrastructure issues that Michigan faces such as lead-laden water service lines, toxic contamination like per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), undersized sewers, failing septic systems, unaffordable water rates and constrained local budgets.
This historic investment includes a proposal combining federal dollars for lead service line replacement in low-income communities ($102.1 million) with bonding authority for water quality protection ($290 million), a one-time General Fund appropriation for drinking water infrastructure and innovation ($105 million), and asset management grants ($2.9 million) to help communities develop, update and improve their plans for wastewater and stormwater.
More than half of EGLE’s budget is funneled to Michigan communities in the form of financial assistance to help address water infrastructure and other environmental- and health-protection efforts.
The Drinking Water Asset Management (DWAM) grant is available to assist water supplies in asset management plan development or updates, and/or distribution system materials inventory as defined in Michigan's Lead and Copper Rule.
The Affordability and Planning Grant (AP) grant is available to any community water supply and local unit of government, including counties, townships, cities, villages and others to assist in planning and/or rate studies.
The Consolidation and Contamination Risk Reduction (C2R2) grant funds projects that remove or reduce PFAS or other contaminants, as defined under state or federal drinking water regulations, or efforts to consolidate systems or connect private residential wells to a local municipal system.
Grants awarded through the DWAM, AP, and C2R2 programs in August and September:
AP Grants
Grosse Pointe Woods - $15,800
C2R2 Grants
City of Rockford — $4,493,820
Hamburg Hills-Coventry Woods LLC— $779,175
DWAM Grants
Beecher Metropolitan District— $409,372
Carrollton Township — $611,398
City of Bessemer - $458,994
City of Croswell — $323,756
City of Harper Woods — $322,970
City of Hart — $406,950
City of Hazel Park— $299,292
City of Highland Park — $459,040
City of Hudsonville — $349,500
City of Muskegon — $898,840
City of Negaunee — $466,171
City of Newaygo — $86,423
City of Ovid — $240,339
City of Plymouth — $347,115
City of Roseville — $569,543
City of Sandusky - $414,213
City of St. Louis — $374,722
City of Watervliet — $113,540
Detroit Water and Sewerage— $154,000
Marquette County (KI Sawyer)— $369,800
St. Clair River Water Authority— $372,555
Village of Cass City — $146,712
Village of Chesaning — $225,600
Village of Quincy — $240,100
Village of Saranac — $158,240
For more information on EGLE grants and loans, including an interactive dashboard, visit the Grants and Loans webpage.
