The Au Train Dam: A Warning Michigan Cannot Afford to Ignore
By Brad D. De Young
Michigan Watershed Watch
Michigan Watershed Watch is an environmental and river-advocacy initiative connected to the West Michigan Kayaking Club, built around a simple belief: you can’t truly love Michigan’s rivers without working to protect them. Our paddles take us deep into the places most people never see—from small creeks and remote tributaries to major rivers—and that firsthand experience gives us a unique perspective on the health of Michigan’s waterways. Through Michigan Watershed Watch, we document river conditions, highlight pollution and habitat concerns, promote responsible stewardship, and advocate for practical solutions that can restore free-flowing, healthy rivers. We believe paddlers should be more than visitors on the water—we should be eyes, voices, and advocates for Michigan’s rivers.
Consumers Energy’s Gamble With Michigan’s Largest Dam: Delaying a Critical $350 Million Safety Fix While Lives Hang in the Balance
Hardy Dam on the Muskegon River is Michigan’s largest hydroelectric dam. It is also a high-hazard structure whose failure would put thousands of people and hundreds of millions of dollars in property at risk downstream, stretching into Muskegon County. After federal regulators updated flood estimates, Hardy no longer meets the standard requiring high-hazard hydropower dams to safely pass the probable maximum flood—the largest flood scientists consider physically possible at the site. The existing auxiliary spillway is undersized. A major storm could overwhelm it.
Consumers Energy’s Dam Strategy: Public Safety Must Not Become a Bargaining Chip
Consumers Energy is warning that Michigan’s reservoirs may not refill next spring unless the company is allowed to sell its fleet of hydroelectric dams. This raises a serious question: Is Consumers Energy attempting to bully the public and pressure politicians into approving a sale by threatening consequences if it does not get its way?
Hodenpyl Dam Is Showing Warning Signs. Michigan Should Start Planning Its Removal.
By Brad De Young, Cofounder of West Michigan Kayaking Club
DNR’s land transactions add acreage to Beaver Island research area, Leelanau State Park
Michigan’s Natural Treasures Are Worth Protecting: DNR Land Acquisitions Strengthen Conservation and Public Access
Michigan’s Arctic Grayling Comeback: A Year Later, the Search Continues
By Brad De Young | Michigan Watershed Watch
The Pollution You Can't See: A 6.7-Mile Toxic Plume Is Creeping Toward Shanty Creek
The Wickes TCE plume is still spreading — and it's now two to three years from the Shanty Creek headwaters
25 Million for Kalamazoo River Restoration Marks Major Investment in Michigan’s Waterways
By Brad De Young | Michigan Watershed Watch
Why is Michigan changing the rules governing dam ownership while a major dam sale is sitting before state regulators?
Michigan’s Dam Debate: Politics Should Not Decide the Future of Our Rivers
Dam Drawdown Could Keep St. Joseph River Reservoir Low
Michigan Watershed Watch | By Brad De Young
Greenside Darter Returns to the Lower Rouge
A Century Later, the Greenside Darter Returns to the Lower Rouge
Michigan’s Dams Were Built for Another Century. Now Lawmakers Are Trying to Fix the System
Michigan’s Dams Were Built for Another Century. Now Lawmakers Are Trying to Fix the System