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June 26, 2005Plan to divert water to Au Sable rappedDEQ has OK'd permit to clean up plumeByRecord-Eagle staff writer GAYLORD - Janney Mayer Simpson doesn't want treated groundwater from a contaminated plume dumped into wetlands owned by her family for almost a century. Nearly 1,000 acres of their secluded woods wrap around Lynn Lake, a 57-acre, spring-fed lake. Kolke Creek flows into and out of the lake. The Mayer family property is just downstream from the spot where Merit Energy wants to pipe up to 1.15 million gallons a day of treated water into the creek as part of a oil well pollution cleanup in the Manistee River watershed. The plan is a flash point for landowners, conservationists and anglers because the creek is part of the headwaters of the Au Sable River - perhaps the most venerated trout stream in Michigan. The cleanup would transfer water from the Manistee to the Au Sable watershed over 10 years beginning this September. Simpson and her husband, Dr. Jeff Simpson, were angered because they were not notified of the proposed project, nor were any of their neighbors. Their mood wasn't lifted by a public meeting held last week on the banks of the creek, after listening to officials from the state Department of Environmental Quality and Department of Natural Resources answer questions. Public notification consisted of a DEQ Web page posting, an e-mail list and publication in three "statewide newspapers" - the Grand Rapids Press, the Detroit Legal News and the Marquette Mining Journal in the Upper Peninsula. "We've dedicated ourselves to preserving the pristine nature of this place," Jeff Simpson said. "Merit chose this option because it costs the least money." Rick Henderson, a DEQ supervisor, said the groundwater pollution occurred over many years at a Shell Oil facility. He said the plume was discovered in 2001 and destroyed two private water wells. Merit now owns the site, where the groundwater is known to contain benzene, ethyl benzene, xylenes and other pollutants. Henderson acknowledged that the DEQ considered only water discharge methods suggested by the oil company. The state completed no studies or surveys before DEQ issued a surface water discharge permit in March. That's because it's "not considered a significant increase in flow," Henderson said, comparing the daily discharge to 70 running garden hoses. David Borgeson, a DNR fisheries supervisor, said his division recommended denial of a request for an easement to pipe the water across state land because of an internal policy that opposes the transfer of water from one watershed to another. The DNR's final decision is pending, he said. David Waltz, president of the Upper Au Sable River Preservation Association, said critics of Merit's plan don't oppose the cleanup, only the method of discharging treated water. It is considered the cheapest alternative because it requires the least number of easements and the pipe would run downhill. A Merit Energy report based its recommended method on the following: - Deep-well injection would mix freshwater with underground brine water, which violates state law. - Needed acres to return the water to the original aquifer are not available. - Routing the water to the Manistee River would include more tree removal and inflate costs, specifically for lift stations to pump the water uphill. No Merit officials were among the more than 50 people to attend the public meeting, but company spokeswoman Jay Prudhomme said the oil company would "definitely consider other viable options" for the water discharge. Several people at the meeting said they intended to file for a contested case hearing with the DEQ before the July 15 deadline. The Simpsons said they contacted an attorney to discuss options to fight the proposal. See Related Story: Meeting at Kolke Creek will discuss Au Sable River cleanup - June 16, 2005
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