Muskegon Lake removed from list of Great Lakes’ most polluted sites

MUSKEGON, Michigan – After decades of coordinated cleanup and community engagement, Muskegon Lake is no longer on a list of the Great Lakes’ most polluted places. 

Officials from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) joined federal and local leaders and community members today at Heritage Landing park in Muskegon for a celebration of the lake’s removal, or delisting, from the U.S.-Canadian roster of Areas of Concern (AOC) around the Great Lakes. 

“Completing this long journey of recovery, restoration, and renewal is a tremendous community achievement that EGLE has been proud to assist,” said EGLE Director Phil Roos. “Along with many partners, we celebrate today’s success and look forward to supporting tomorrow’s stewardship and growth.” 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 5 Administrator and Great Lakes National Program Manager Anne Vogel called it “a significant milestone in our ongoing work to restore and protect the Great Lakes. This accomplishment showcases the commitment and collaborative spirit of our partners in restoring not just the lake, but also the habitats and recreational opportunities that had been lost for so long.” 

AOCs are designated areas in the Great Lakes Basin marked by high levels of historical legacy pollution requiring cleanup. The Great Lakes AOC Program was established in 1987 under the U.S.-Canada Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement to tackle the worst pollution hot spots.  

Muskegon Lake was named an AOC even earlier, in 1985, following more than a century of contamination from industrial and municipal waste. 

The Muskegon Lake Watershed Partnership (MLWP) formed in 1991. Six years later, sediment remediation projects for AOCs received $9.4 million from the Clean Michigan Initiative. Over the next 28 years, additional funding would come from the Great Lakes Legacy Act, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI), the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and more.  

All told, remediation and restoration took more than $84 million, including $67 million in federal funds, largely through the GLRI, and $17 million in state, local, and private contributions.   

“For decades, our community has worked with partners in the nonprofit sector and every level of government to heal the wounds left by industrial pollution and to restore our treasured Muskegon Lake,” said Muskegon Mayor Ken Johnson. “Today’s delisting is not only an environmental victory but a testament to what’s possible when people come together with a shared vision for a healthier, more sustainable future.” 

“We are thrilled to share that Muskegon Lake has officially been delisted as a U.S. EPA-designated Area of Concern – a milestone that marks the successful restoration of our watershed,” said MLWP Chair Dennis Kirksey. “We are already witnessing the benefits of this restoration – not only in the health of our environment, but in the vitality of our local economy. These improvements will continue to shape our community for generations to come.” 

"I’m honored to have been part of the monumental transformation of Muskegon Lake. This achievement marks not only the end of an era but the beginning of a new chapter, one that will shape our community for generations to come,” said West Michigan Shoreline Regional Development Corporation Executive Director Erin Kuhn. 

“Muskegon Lake’s delisting as an Area of Concern is great news for all Michiganders and residents of the area," said state Sen. Jon Bumstead. "I would like to thank EGLE and all of those who have worked to improve the water quality of Muskegon Lake and look forward to continued efforts to make further progress.”

“Muskegon is a city first and foremost set on Muskegon Lake; the lake has always been the lifeblood of the community, from the days of lumber to the days of industry to the tourism of today," said Michigan Rep. Will Snyder. "This momentous day is the culmination of decades of hard work by hundreds of concerned active citizens partnering with government at every level to do big things. It’s exciting that we have restored Muskegon Lake to this degree. I look forward to the next decades of restoration.”

EGLE joined efforts with the EPA, local governments and tribes, and partners including Grand Valley State University (GVSU), the Muskegon Conservation District, the West Michigan Shoreline Regional Development Commission, and other federal agencies like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 

Federal, state, and local project partners remediated more than 190,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment and restored approximately 134 acres of habitat and over 6,000 feet of shoreline including nearly 100 acres of open water and emergent wetlands, as well as habitat for fish and native plants. Partners also removed more than 110,000 tons of logging-era sawmill debris from the lake, restoring habitat for bottom-dwelling invertebrates, fish, and wildlife.

By 2024, each of Muskegon Lake’s beneficial use impairments, or BUIs, under the AOC program was formally removed. Signoff by the U.S. State Department on Sept. 26 made the delisting official. 

The investments are already paying dividends. According to a GVSU study, the remediation and restoration of Muskegon Lake is projected to increase local home values by nearly $8 million and boost the local recreation economy by $28 million annually. Muskegon already has seen a 19% increase in marina customers and a 45% increase in hotel room tax collected by the county. Overall, the projections anticipate a nearly six to one ratio of return on investment. More information is available at the EPA’s Muskegon Lake Area of Concern website. 

Muskegon Lake covers 4,149 acres and flows into Lake Michigan from the west coast of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula.  

It is the eighth U.S. AOC to be delisted and the fourth in Michigan, after Deer Lake in the Upper Peninsula and White Lake along Lake Michigan were delisted in 2014 and the Lower Menominee River, shared with Wisconsin, was delisted in 2020.  

Ten AOCs remain in Michigan, all in various states of restoration: Torch Lake, Manistique River, and St. Marys River in the Upper Peninsula; Kalamazoo River in West Michigan; Saginaw River and Bay in the Thumb area; and St. Clair River, Clinton River, Rouge River, Detroit River, and River Raisin in the Detroit metropolitan area.