Cleanup efforts progress in polluted Michigan areas

After decades of being on governmental radar, Michigan’s Department of Environmental Quality is finally making progress cleaning up two toxic areas in the Great Lake region.

Deer Lake in Marquette County and Muskegon Lake in western Michigan have been on the state’s list of most polluted sites because of environmental degeneration. According to the press, “Deer Lake and Muskegon Lake are among 43 sites designated by the U.S. and Canada as environmental ‘areas of concern’ in 1987.”

Over the past decade, both areas have been dealing with traces of mercury sediments. However, Muskegon County has greatly improved its water quality, which resulted in officials canceling a dredging commercial. Deer Lake still has a ways to go in removing high levels of mercury, and once work is done officials can determine whether the lake can be designated as restored.

Read the complete story at The Chicago Tribune.

Image credit: NOAA