There are thousands of contaminated sites in Michigan that were contaminated by corporate polluters, and yet Michigan taxpayers are on the hook to pay for cleanups. Demand that polluters pay for their messes!
WHY THIS MATTERS
Until 1995, Michigan had the strongest “polluter pay” law in the country. When Gov. John Engler took office, he along with the State Legislature, gutted the whole law. This has left the State of Michigan today with over 24,000 contaminated sites and has shifted the burden of cleanup costs from those responsible for the mess to the state and taxpayers who don’t have the resources and funding to clean them up due to decades of disinvestment. Under current Michigan laws, polluters can simply restrict access to a contaminated site instead of treating or removing pollutants. The law doesn’t require thorough cleanups, leading to orphaned sites that are too polluted to build on and contaminated aquifers filled with water too dirty to drink.
It’s egregious to let corporate polluters pollute our air, land, and water for their economic gain at the expense of the health of our citizens. We have the opportunity to change this framework: State Senator Jeff Irwin (D-Ann Arbor) and State Representative Jason Morgan (D-Ann Arbor) have introduced a "polluter pay" package that will bring accountability to industry in Michigan and drastically improve the state's environmental cleanup standards.
The package of bills, introduced as HB 5241-5247 and Senate Bills 605-611, would set robust requirements for environmental cleanups, enhance transparency into cleanup sites, prevent new orphan sites from being created, and empower those impacted by pollution to pursue justice.
Take action right now, by sending a message to your State Representative and Senator!
