Peter Ostlund, MI DEQ, Water Resources Division, Midwest Environmental Compliance Conference, Chicago, October 29-30, 2015

1. Protect and Monitor
◦ 4 Great Lakes
◦ 3,288 miles of Great Lakes
shoreline
◦ 11,000 inland lakes
◦ 36,000 river miles
◦ 6.5 million acres of wetlands
◦ 70,000 acres of critical dunes
For swimming, fishing, drinking water, and aquatic ecosystems.

3. Detroit Water and Sewerage Department
Annual Total Phosphorus Load
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
TotalPhosphorusLoad(MT/year)
Year

4. River Raisin Annual Total Phosphorus Loading

5. Promote harmful algal blooms
◦ Filter feeding and excretion stimulate
nutrient releases into water column
◦ Selectively feeding on phytoplankton
◦ Reject blue-greens
Photo credit: Paul Skawinski, Golden Sands
RC&D Council

6.  Ensure greatest recreational experience for
current and future generations
◦ Real-time monitoring
◦ Development and implementation
of watershed plans
◦ Beaches are always open

7.  Builds on 2014 real-time pilot at Metro Beach
 Uses eDNA technology
 Partnership with local health departments and
MSU
 Labs provide multiple
benefits

8.  Know it is safe to swim before swimming!

9.  Convened by MDEQ Director Dan Wyant
 Two-year process
 Report issued in December 2014
 Short-term implementation projects
 Long-term implementation strategy

10.  Monitoring
 Technical Framework
 Water Conservation
 Water Users Groups
 Inland Lake Impacts

11. WWAT Registrations
LQW since 7/9/2009
• 3,151 requests
• 2,172 passed WWAT
• 979 required staff review
• 15 have been denied
• 92% are for irrigation

12.  Part 5: Spill Response
 Part 13: Floodplains
 Part 23: Industrial Pretreatment

13.  WRD is working as part of the QOL Commercial
Aquaculture Workgroup in evaluating proposals for
net pen operations.
 WRD permits would regulate net pens operations
under:
◦ Part 325, Great Lakes Submerged Lands for
placement and bottomlands use agreement
◦ Part 31, Water Resources Protection for
wastewater discharges

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20.  New database launched August 17, 2015
 Combines and updates 25 applications and databases
 NPDES, storm water, CSO, wetlands, dredge and fill,
compliance, and inspections
 Public facing system
 Bugs

23. Protect and Monitor
◦ 4 Great Lakes
◦ 3,288 miles of Great Lakes
shoreline
◦ 11,000 inland lakes
◦ 36,000 river miles
◦ 6.5 million acres of wetlands
◦ 70,000 acres of critical dunes
For swimming, fishing, drinking water, and aquatic ecosystems.