Cleanup efforts hit 'triple whammy'

Given Michigan's economy, it's not surprising elected officials aren't clamoring to introduce a bond proposal that continues funding a program for cleaning up abandoned contaminated sites.

Officials with the state Department of Natural Resources and Environment said there is no way to absorb the cleanup costs for these orphan sites in the current budget.

In 2002, Michigan allocated $356.4 million to the then-Department of Environmental Quality. Of that, $101 million went to the department's general fund -- the portion officials could allocate to orphan site cleanups. For 2010, the budget is $332 million, with the general fund accounting for $27 million.

"They've removed almost 75 percent of that general fund money for our department," said Bob McCann, a spokesman for MDNRE -- the new department created when Natural Resources and Environmental Quality were merged in January.

But a new bond won't be discussed until changes are made to the program. Environmental and manufacturing representatives said the program called Part 201-- named for its section of the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act -- needs to be fixed, but they argue for different reasons.

"(The program has) gotten more complicated over time, and that's ground some of these cleanup projects to a halt and kept us from being able to finish one thing and move on to the next," said Randy Gross, director of environmental and regulatory policy for the Michigan Manufacturers Association.

James Clift, policy director for the Michigan Environmental Council, described Part 201 as "marginally" effective.

"We're leaving a lot of contamination in place long term," he said. "And you worry about what will happen when you do that."

Efforts are under way in the state Senate to address those concerns, but not everyone believes the result will be a program that operates as it does now.

"You've got a triple whammy going on right now," said Chuck Hersey, manager of environmental programs at the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments.

"There is the fact that the Part 201 money is running out, the obviously tough budget situation the state is in and the fact that funding has taken a permanent turn to the downside. The drop in property taxes and taxable value is something that is here to stay."