water

Flint is giving its poorer residents a break on their water bills

Steve Carmody — Sat, 13 Apr 2013 19:04:00 +0000

The city of Flint is reducing the water bills for its poorest residents.

Beginning July 1^st, city homeowners who already qualify for Flint’s poverty exemption for property taxes will get a $53 break on their monthly water bills. According to the city of Flint:

In this morning's Michigan news headlines. . .

Michigan Radio Newsroom — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 12:23:59 +0000

Lower lake levels-- the good and bad news

Water Hill 2012: Creating a new spring music tradition in Ann Arbor (Video)

Michigan Radio Newsroom — Tue, 08 May 2012 22:02:24 +0000

This past Sunday marked the second successful Water Hill Music Festival.

Named after the west-side Ann Arbor neighborhood that hosts it, the festival features local musicians playing on porches while visitors wander and listen.

While some acts were invited by friends who lent their stoops for the afternoon, many live in the neighborhood and simply took the opportunity to show off their musical talents to the community.

Take a look at the video below to hear from a few of the bands and see the crowds of kids, parents and dogs enjoying music and sunshine.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TEKL-D6rG_A&list=UUiO61Z2BTd18ovzJ4syJJpQ&index=1&feature=plcp

Massive Lake Huron water pipeline moving forward

Mark Brush — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 18:45:33 +0000

There's a plan for the third biggest Great Lake, Huron, to be tapped by a 72 to 78 inch pipeline.

The Karegnondi Water Authority (KWA) is planning to start construction on a pipeline that will carry Lake Huron water to areas around the I-69 corridor of Michigan's Thumb area.

(Karengnondi is a old Petan Indian word meaning "lake.")

The KWA is made up of officials from Flint, Lapeer, Genesee County, Lapeer County, and Sanilac County.

The Flint Journal reports that Genesee County Drain Commissioner Jeff Wright said the county has started designing the "massive intake to draw water from Lake Huron," and that ground should be broken on the new water pipeline project by fall.

"We are starting the design of the intake," which will allow for construction on that piece of the $600 million pipeline project, Wright said.

The drain commissioner said the intake itself, which is expected to cost about $30 million, will take longer to finish than any other part of the project, and "the design requirements are the same whether any community drops out (of the project) or not."

The City of Flint, initially a partner in the project, might be forced to step aside because of its financial situation.

On it's website, the KWA says the pipeline is being built to "avoid increased water rates from the City of Detroit, which could increase by up to 15% per year."

MSU Study: Minorities pay more for water in Michigan

Sarah Cwiek — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 00:20:48 +0000

A new study indicates racial minorities pay more for water and sewer service than whites in Michigan.

Michigan State University researchers looked at what people across the state paid for water and sewer service in 2000. Basic economic theory predicts that rural residents would pay the most for such services.

But the researchers found precisely the opposite to be true. Their results show that people in urban centers—with large minority populations—paid the most.

Macomb County officials avert drinking water monitoring system shutdown – for now

Sarah Cwiek — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 15:08:03 +0000

It looks like a system that monitors drinking water for at least three million people in southeast Michigan will stay online for another year.

The monitoring system gives early alerts if chemical spills are detected—so it keeps contaminants out of the drinking water system.

The system was in danger of shutting down when federal and state dollars ran out. But officials from Macomb and St. Clair counties have each come up with enough money to keep the system going for another year.

But policymakers are still searching for a long-term solution.

Macomb County Commission Chair Kathy Vosburg says a long-term fix will likely mean a small consumer fee.

“Consumers are very willing to pay for that, it comes out to be something like 50 cents to a dollar per household per year.”

But implementing that would take cooperation from the many different cities that send out water bills--and the city of Detroit, which owns and operates the whole drinking water system.

The future of southeast Michigan's drinking water (part 2)

Sarah Cwiek — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 18:09:24 +0000

Detroit’s water department has been under federal oversight for almost 35 years. Recently, the city tried to get that oversight lifted. But the federal judge who monitors the department shot that effort down, and he ordered stakeholders to find a way to fix the system’s decades-long problems--within two months. Some people wonder about that short timeline—and whether some of the Judge’s suggestions hint at a possible takeover.

The future of Southeast Michigan's drinking water (part 1)

Sarah Cwiek — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 14:35:56 +0000

If you live in southeast Michigan, chances are you get your water through Detroit’s municipal water system.

Detroit owns and operates the system that serves more than three million people. That’s long been a major source of tension between the city and suburban communities.

Some recent events have pushed questions about system’s long-term future into sharper focus. And it’s shaping up to be a battle.

Water monitoring system in jeopardy

Sarah Hulett — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 13:17:34 +0000

A system that monitors the quality of drinking water for 3 million people in southeast Michigan is in danger of being shut down for lack of money.

Monitoring stations are located in Lake Saint Clair, and the Detroit and Saint Clair rivers. Macomb County interim deputy health officer Gary White says federal and state grants, along with local money, have kept the system running since 2007:

Michigan State leading multistate freshwater study

Kyle Norris — Sun, 14 Aug 2011 18:55:06 +0000

A Michigan State University scientist is leading a team of researchers to study how lakes, streams and wetlands are connected to their surroundings.

Associate professor of fisheries and wildlife Patricia Soranno is using a $2.2 million National Science Foundation grant to examine land use and climate change's effect on freshwater ecosystems.

Growing the region's clean economy

Kate Davidson — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 13:28:01 +0000

The clean economy is touted as a future economic driver of the region. But a new report shows that while Ohio and Illinois have added jobs to the clean economy, Michigan is the only state to have lost them. Changing Gears visited one scientist in Plymouth, Mich., who’s trying to nudge that number back up.

Current beach closures and advisories around Michigan

Mark Brush — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 20:39:35 +0000

When bacteria levels get high, county health departments close the beaches. The latest news of a beach closure is on Lake St. Clair:

A week after the Macomb County Health Department gave the all-clear message to swimmers at Memorial Park Beach in St. Clair Shores, the beach has again been deemed unsafe for swimming.
The department issued a no-swimming advisory today for the beach because of high E. coli levels
Blossom Heath in St. Clair Shores remains under the no-swimming advisory because of its E. coli levels, as it has been since May 26.

County health departments issue the warnings and closures, and the state keeps track of them.

The Michigan BeachGuard System has a map with red flags marking closures and advisories.

Currently, there are 15 advisories or closures at public beaches around the state - that's 15 out of 1,211 public beaches.

Free water park an oasis for Grand Rapids neighborhood

Lindsey Smith — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 04:19:13 +0000

The two acre park is a step towards the city’s goal to have every Grand Rapids resident live within ¼ mile of some kind of greenspace. That goal has been difficult to achieve since nearly all of the city’s land has already been developed. Plus, city government has been cutting down on spending for years.

13-year old Ashley Jones remembers the old vacant lot where the park is now. She refered to it as a ‘hot mess’ before the renovations.

“It looked crazy. It had the prickles when you walked it would stick on your shoes. There was no shade or nothing. And it was kind of boring.”

Clarence Clemons, The Big Man In The E Street Band, Has Died

Marc Hirsh — Sun, 19 Jun 2011 19:21:38 +0000

Clarence Clemons, saxophone player for Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, has died of complications of a stroke. He was 69.

If the above seems abrupt, that's because Clemons's death was abrupt. Unlike when his bandmate, keyboard and glockenspiel player Danny Federici, succumbed to cancer in 2008, there was no time to prepare, little opportunity to make peace with the fact and say goodbye.

A unique music festival in Ann Arbor (video)

Mark Brush — Fri, 06 May 2011 16:00:03 +0000

""It must be something in the water." - Paul Tinkerhess.

Last Sunday, I walked around a neighborhood in Ann Arbor's west side and witnessed a new music phenomenon - the Water Hill Music Festival - where neighbors played music from their front porches, backyards, and garages.

The idea for the festival came from Paul Tinkerhess, a local business owner and musician.

Tinkerhess described the concept in Groundcover News:

"The concept is simple," Tinkerhess said. "On the afternoon of Sunday, May 1st, everyone in the neighborhood who either is a musician or wants to pretend to be a musician is encouraged to step out onto their front porch and play music. That's it. Or half of it. The other half is that we are inviting all the other neighbors, and the rest of the world, to wander through the neighborhood that afternoon and enjoy something like a music festival with a lot of stages."

The neighborhood in Ann Arbor's west side, dubbed "Water Hill" by Tinkerhess, if filled with musical talent.

I caught a small fraction of the festival, and made this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DBNlK0Nfe_0

One festival attendee, Patti Smith, said the event was "Ann Arbor covered in awesome sauce."