Decades of industrial pollution left Michigan’s Detroit and Kalamazoo rivers contaminated with PCBs, mercury and other chemicals; the state is now committing $89 million to clean and restore the waterways by 2040
- Representative imageFor much of the 20th century, factories and paper mills along Michigan's Detroit and Kalamazoo rivers discharged waste that settled into the sediment and lingered for decades.
- The legacy includes polychlorinated biphenyls, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, mercury and other pollutants that have kept both waterways on the US Environmental Protection Agency's list of Great Lakes areas of concern.
- In October 2026, Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced an $89 million commitment called Reclaim the Rivers to address that contamination and restore habitat, with a goal of achieving t
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- Representative imageFor much of the 20th century, factories and paper mills along Michigan's Detroit and Kalamazoo rivers discharged waste that settled into the sediment and lingered for decades.
- The legacy includes polychlorinated biphenyls, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, mercury and other pollutants that have kept both waterways on the US Environmental Protection Agency's list of Great Lakes areas of concern.
- In October 2026, Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced an $89 million commitment called Reclaim the Rivers to address that contamination and restore habitat, with a goal of achieving t
Sources: Times of India