EPA has completed a periodic review of Michigan's drinking water program and is releasing a report that identifies key steps that the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality should take to ensure that public water systems in the state continue to provide safe and clean drinking water to all of its residents.
EPA recommends that the state increase both funding and staffing resources, improve electronic data reporting and management, and ensure its program appropriately implements and complies with all aspects of the Safe Drinking Water Act. EPA and the state will work together to identify and track corrective actions to ensure that program improvements are made in a timely manner.
EPA regularly reviews state drinking water programs in states that have obtained primary enforcement responsibility (primacy) for the administration and enforcement of primary drinking water regulations and requirements applicable to public water systems.
EPA examined MDEQ's implementation of the SDWA and reviewed files covering the approximate time period of October 2013 to September 2015. The on-site portion of the review was conducted in April 2016 in Lansing, Mich.
The review consisted of three separate evaluations:
- a drinking water program file review that examined MDEQ’s implementation of all SDWA regulations,
- an in-depth review of the state’s implementation of the Michigan Lead and Copper Rule, and
- an enforcement verification that reviewed the state’s efforts to return public water systems to compliance with the SDWA.
News Releases
- EPA Completes Review of Michigan State Drinking Water Program - Oct. 26, 2017
- EPA Region 5 to Audit State of Michigan's Drinking Water Program - Nov. 10, 2015
- Review of the Michigan Drinking Water Program 2016 - Final Report (PDF)(234 pp, 6 MB, Oct. 24, 2017)
- Cover Letter for Review of 2016 Michigan Drinking Water Program (PDF)(2 pp, 378 K, Oct. 25, 2017)