Contact Person(s):

Jim Hayes, Township Clerk
tel: 810-327-6396

 

	The residents of Grant Township, a largely agricultural community in St. Clair County depend on groundwater for residential and agricultural uses. This resource will become even more important as growth reaches west from Port Huron and north from the Detroit metropolitan area in the next century. Although township officials recognize the need to develop a groundwater protection program, this small community of 1,300 lacks the resources to do expensive planning for the future. Its annual budget of only $250,000 prevents it from undertaking significant analysis, planning and protection of its groundwater resources.
	Taking a personal initiative, a local official has worked to identify, promote awareness of, and protect the Township's groundwater resources. Township Clerk Jim Hayes who also is the zoning administrator, developed a well log map for the township by integrating existing well log information with the township's master plan. The well log map identifies wells on a section by section basis, showing the depth of the wells and their flow. Hayes previously served as the Township's planning commissioner and strongly supported the adoption the master plan in 1994-1995.
	"Water is a critical resource," Hayes says. "It's an asset. It's part of the picture that we need to consider in planning for our future." The well log map provides a "cross-view of water availability" that helps residents and developers understand the availability and vulnerability of their groundwater sources. Hayes hopes that this heightened awareness can facilitate groundwater protection efforts. Although the use of well logs on file expedited their cross-referencing with the master plan, Hayes says it has been difficult obtaining new well logs from drillers to keep the map current. Hayes is also concerned with protection of the agricultural land uses in Grant Township and believes educational programs, including the well log program, help farmers become more aware of how they can contribute to groundwater protection. Hayes serves on the St. Clair-Lapeer County Groundwater Stewardship Committee, a project coordinated by the local Soil Conservation District. Working in tandem with Lapeer County and using funds supplied by the state's groundwater stewardship program, the Committee is educating farmers and owners of residential property about proper well abandonment to prevent contamination and provides pass-through cost-share monies for abandonment. The program also encourages farmers to reduce excess use of fertilizers and pesticides through cost share arrangements, nitrate testing, and rate controllers and foam markers for pesticide application. Why does he spend personal time without compensation on these projects? "Groundwater is a resource each of us depends on, and it's our job to pass it along to others in the same or better condition than what we found it in," Hayes says.

Institute of Water Research - MSU
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