Toilet water is seeping into Michigan’s waters

Government officials are demanding financial assistance to update failed septic systems after it was revealed toilet water is seeping into Michigan waters.

Unlike public sewer systems, septic systems are private and typically installed in rural areas. The septic tank is located underground, along the main sewer line that extends outside of your home.

Once the waste is deposited into the chamber, solids sink toward the bottom and liquids rise into the soil. Ordinarily, the process should strip the waste of any fecal bacteria or viruses, and thereby, leave clean water in the middle of the tank. But faulty septic systems can cause dirty water to pollute fresh water, rivers, and lakes nearby.

This can cause illnesses – like an E coli infection – in those using the water. The polluted water can also ignite toxic algae blooms – which can make people and animals sick.

With almost 30 per cent of Michigan homes having a septic system, defective septic systems is a common issue over the past decade.

In 2018, a report from the Barry-Eaton County Health Department said that one out four septic systems had possible issues in the county.

Just north of Detroit in Macomb county, 6,126 septic systems were inspected over the course of six years. Of those septic systems, 15 percent had issues like laundry waste seeping into the ground to broken lids. 412 of the tanks had to be replaced or join a public sewer system.

And in Ingham County, a decade of inspections 13 per cent of septic systems were “near failure”. Some of which were oozing waste into the plumbing system.

There’s also research showing how these septic systems have polluted waterways.

A 2018 study from researchers at Michigan State University (MSU) tested 64 waterways and found that those near septics had higher levels of human fecal bacteria.

Joan Rose, a Michigan State University microbiologist who led the study, told Bridge Michigan this week that the future water supply will be bleak if septics continue to leak polluted water. “If we keep neglecting our wastewater, then down the road we’re going to have more contaminated waters that we can’t use.”

If the government officials receive the money, they plan on either replacing or repairing failed septic systems.

In a 2018 report, conducted by Public Sector Consultants, 60 per cent of septic tanks in Gratiot, Clinton, and Montcalm counties had dangerous levels of human waste.

Michigan is no stranger to water pollution issues.

From 2014 to 2019, Flint’s water was contaminated with lead, exposing 99,000 residents in one year alone. The percentage of blood levels among children doubled citywide. High levels of lead in children are linked to learning disabilities, shorter stature, and impaired hearing.

The Midwestern state is home to four Great Lakes, one of the largest freshwater supplies in the world.

The climate crisis is already impacting the Great Lake region with harmful blooms of algae and an uptick of invasive species.

Out of date, decrepit infrastructure and the ongoing climate crisis is also causing Michigan problems.

With the climate crisis causing rising sea levels the city of Detroit has an ever-growing amount of flood because of its combined sewer system, which connects sanitary sewers to storm drains. While there are residents advocating for more adequate flood planning, the state hasn’t made plans to improve the infrastructure.