(GREENLAND TOWNSHIP, MI) - State, county and township officials are working together in Ontonagon County’s Greenland Township to answer questions about an unlicensed water source. Some locals have been using the water for drinking and other household needs for many years.
Officials say the water is being drawn from a hose, after running through an old watermain that travels nearly a mile along the Bill Nichols Rail-Trail. Although water samples have been collected from the site and tested, routine sampling is nnote being done. The preliminary tests did meet safe water drinking standards. The DNR posted signs alerting the public that the water is not drinkable. However, the signs have recently been removed by vandals and discarded.
Ron Yesney, DNR Upper Peninsula trails coordinator, says they are working to conduct more extensive testing and resolve questions about this water source. The DNR is exploring options and costs involved in trying to find the water's source. Residents living in houses in the immediate vicinity have been contacted and are being provided bottled water for drinking.
For more information, contact John Pepin, DNR deputy public information officer, in Marquette at 906-226-1352 or pepinj@michigan.gov.
