Michigan Water Facts
- Michigan has over 11,000 inland lakes, and 36,000 miles of rivers and streams.
- 27 billion gallons of water flow into Michigan's groundwater each day.
- 730 million gallons of groundwater in Michigan are pumped out of the ground daily.
- 594 million gallons of groundwater are pumped daily to provide drinking water for Michigan residents.
- Michigan ranks 3rd nationally in surface water area.
- Michigan ranks 15th nationally in total water use.
- Michigan ranks 25th nationally in groundwater use.
- Michigan ranks 33rd nationally in per capita water use.
- 80 percent of water in Michigan streams comes from groundwater.
- 5 percent of water entering Lake Michigan comes from groundwater.
- Tourism related to Michigan’s Great Lakes and other water resources generates billions of dollars each year.
Surface Waters in Michigan
Michigan is blessed by vast supplies of fresh surface waters and bordered by four of five Great Lakes: Michigan, Superior, Huron and Erie. These lakes provide: drinking water for our residents, clean water as an input and product for numerous industries, recreational opportunities, habitat for fish and wildlife, freshwater for a vibrant commercial and recreational fishery, and transportation byways for a significant shipping industry.
The Great Lakes provide Michigan with 823,000 jobs that represent nearly 25 percent of Michigan’s payroll (University of Michigan, Michigan Sea Grant, 2008: Michigan Jobs, Economic Vitality and the Great Lakes).
In addition, Michigan has over 11,000 inland surface water lakes and 36,000 miles of streams, including over 12,000 miles of cold water trout streams. These water bodies cover the state and range from small ponds to large lakes such as Houghton Lake; minor streams to large, fast flowing rivers, such as the Grand River, which, at 260 miles long is the largest in the state. These rivers and lakes also provide water for drinking, industrial processes, recreation, fish and wildlife habitat, and transportation.
These surface water resources are bountiful, and are a driving force in Michigan’s economy. However, the health of some of these water bodies is threatened by legacy pollution, municipal and industrial wastewater discharge, failing treatment and transportation infrastructure, and non-point source runoff of pollution from diffuse sources in both urban and rural settings. These threats have degraded water quality in some of these lakes and rivers – and have limited their use for water supply, recreation, and aquatic habitat.
These challenges provide numerous opportunities for technology and infrastructure innovation and deployment. Because Michigan is surrounded by, and covered in freshwater, it is the ideal location for the innovation and development of solutions for fresh water quality protection, restoration, and conservation.
Additional information on Michigan’s surface waters:
Groundwater in Michigan
The State of Michigan has a vast supply of groundwater that traverses almost the entire state, and is used for drinking, irrigation, and industrial processing. Michigan's groundwater feeds the state’s cold water trout streams, diverse wetlands, and many of its beautiful, ecologically diverse surface lakes. It provides drinking water for over half the state’s residents through both public water supply systems and private drinking water wells. Most of the state’s more than 12,000 public water supplies use ground water as their source.
Michigan has both bedrock and glacial groundwater aquifers – both of which yield millions of gallons of water every day for our residents and businesses. Bedrock aquifers are comprised of thick sedimentary rock layers that are depressed near the middle of the state and form a broad bowl called the Michigan Basin. Most of Michigan lies within this basin. Most bedrock aquifers in the state are overlain by glacial deposits that also yield water from shallow aquifers.
Water yield rates from aquifers vary due to several factors, including the composition and thickness of glacial deposits (sand and gravel have higher transmissivity rates, clay has much lower transmissivity rates). Generally, a well must yield at least five gallons per minute (GPM) to be considered a reliable domestic source. Public water wells must yield a significantly higher rate in order to accommodate the large volume of water pumping.
Estimated groundwater yield from Michigan’s bedrock aquifers and glacial deposits
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