Overview
- In the summer of 2020, Mid Michigan Materials purchased the Vella Pit from a small family operator active at that location in Ann Arbor Township since the 1960s. It’s located in the heart of theFleming Creekshed - one of Washtenaw County’s most fragile ecosystems. (Source: https://helpsaveourwells.com/)
- Starting sometime in 2022, wells in the area surrounding the gravel pit in Ann Arbor Township started losing pressure, water levels began dropping and, in some cases going dry. To date over 28 wells are known to be impacted in various ways. (Source: https://helpsaveourwells.com/)
- Residents of the township organized a grassroots effort to protect their water resources from exploitation from the mine. Amy Olszewski is a resident of Ann Arbor Township and her well is among those affected. She says, “During testimony to both the Planning Commission and the Board of Trustees, they stated that they would not be using groundwater to operate the mine, nor would they affect the water table. Also, their permit required that, should they change operations, they needed to tell the Board of Trustees.”
- The gravel pit is now owned and operated by Mid-Michigan Materials (MMM). Current operations include mining and production of washed sand and stone. Reserve material is mechanically mined and hauled to the wash plant and sized for usable product. Finished product is stockpiled on site and the wastewater from the wash plant is routed through four (4) on-site settling ponds for treatment and is discharged from the North Pond to an unnamed tributary of Fleming Creek. Water is recirculated back to the wash plant from the pond directly West of the wash plant. (Source: https://drive.google.com/file/d/12v-HMXf2Q6wTRWDO_uFAc-ZzsRkg9-6Z/view)
- On May 3rd, 2023 - Mid Michigan Materials submitted a Water Withdrawal Application to EGLE to increase their withdrawal from 2.0 million to 4.8 million gallons per day. In the 11th hour, MMM decided to withdraw their permit application rather than have it denied. This is likely due to the overwhelming response and hard work by the community. They also developed a nice website, https://helpsaveourwells.com/, to keep the public up to date with the latest developments. A graphic showing an ariel view of the pit comparing 2020 to 2022 makes plain an astonishing amount of new sediment flowing into Fleming Creek.
- On September 28, 2023, Ann Arbor Charter Township filed a complaint against Mid Michigan Materials in Washtenaw Circuit Court for violations of its Conditional Use Permit, Development Agreement, and Township Ordinances. The following day, the Township filed a motion for a temporary restraining order, requesting that the Court prohibit Mid Michigan Materials from mining in violation of these approvals and regulations. (Source: https://aatwp.org/press-release-regarding-complaint-aact-v-mmm/) The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) has issues numerous violations against the Vella Pit, including several new ones following this complaint.
- Amy Olszewski, a resident of and advocate for Ann Arbor Township says “In December 2022, we became aware of the first well failure in our area, a house south of the mine. After that, a series of wells failed - either went dry, static level dropped upwards of 40 feet, well pumps failed, water quality degradation as far as 2+ miles from the mine. In my case, my well pump died in June of this year. It was only after a local well and drilling company told me about the issues in my neighborhood (because they were replacing my neighbors' wells). I became aware that we had a huge problem on our hands. It turned out the mine was de-watering, not dredging to get to the gravel. This is a process where the mine actively lowers the water table in a huge pit by pumping water out of the pit. Once the water level is lowered, the mine can access the gravel easier than just scooping it out of a lake, or dredging. Again - the mine is actively pumping water out of the ground, dewatering our aquifer. A representative of the Huron River Watershed Council told me that they believe the mine "broke the groundwater membrane" sometime in late Winter/early Spring of this year. A neighbor of mine to the south replaced his well in April 2022, then that well went dry and he needed a new one drilled in August 2022. We are terrified this is our future...every time we turn on the faucets in our house.”
PROGRAMMING NOTE: 89.1 WEMU did offer Mid Michigan Materials LLC equal time to address these contentions that have been put forth previously and in this interview. Prior to the recording of this interview, WEMU had not received a response. Since then, Mid Michigan Materials LLC responded it is not yet prepared to do an interview as it continues to review court filings.
Company Spokesperson, John Sellek, did issue this statement to WEMU:
"The Vella facility has been in operation for nearly 70 years and has helped build Washtenaw County and surrounding areas. That includes things like home foundations, sidewalks, roads, medical facilities, schools, and even the I-275 reconstruction ongoing just west of here, so the facility will be needed far into the future. While we deeply regret causing issues for a handful of our neighbors' wells, we have paid to fix those wells and are unaware of anyone without water currently. We have not and never did request to increase the amount of water being pumped and are continuing to adjust and monitor our operations, including paying for a new hydrological study in order to continue protecting water resources. We continue to seek a working partnership with both our neighbors and the township government, even as litigation is ongoing and we look forward to resolving outstanding issues."
Transcription
David Fair: Water accessibility is becoming a major issue in Ann Arbor Township, and a gravel mining operation appears to be at the center of the problem. At least, that's the contention in a lawsuit and injunction request filed last week. I'm David Fair, and this is 89 one WEMU's Issues of the Environment. The township last week filed a complaint against three companies, including Mid Michigan Materials LLC, which operates the old Vella Pit mine off Earhart Road. The township is not only challenging the legality of the company's mining process but is seeking a temporary injunction to stop the mining. Reportedly, at least ten residential wells in the township have gone dry. Others have seen a significant drop in water levels, and there are worries for the overall health of the Fleming Creekshed. Attorneys for Mid Michigan Materials and the other two parties involved did file a response on Monday of this week opposing the motion. Our guest today is Amy Olszewski. She is an impacted resident of and advocate for Ann Arbor Township. And. Amy, thank you so much for the time this morning. I appreciate it.
Amy Olszewski: Well, we thank you so much. On behalf of all the residents that have been affected by this mine's operations, we just are so grateful that we're able to be heard.
David Fair: So, what happened with your well?
Amy Olszewski: Well, in June of this year, my husband was actually watering the garden, and suddenly there was no water. And when a local well and drilling company came out to look at our well, it turned out that our pump had failed because of lack of water. And so, they gave us a new pump, lowered our pump, and, for now, we have water.
David Fair: And how did you learn it was happening to other wells in the township through that visit?
Amy Olszewski: Yeah, through that visit. Exactly. It was the guy who came out to replace our pump, and he took me aside and said, "Are you aware that they're pumping upwards of 4 million gallons a day out of the ground over at the mine on Earhart Road?" And just to provide everybody a little geographic locator, if you go to the Domino Farms petting zoo, you just go a mile and a half north, and there's a fully operational sand and gravel pit.
David Fair: And, in fact, it was the Vella family that owned that mining operation for about 60 years up until 2020, when it sold to Mid Michigan Materials. Now, I know you don't like to refer to it as "develop it," as most do, because there were never really any problems with the mining operation until after the sale. Have you found Mid Michigan to be responsive to the concerns that you've expressed and that others affected by Ann Arbor Township residents have expressed?
Amy Olszewski: Absolutely not. You know, we really have three main issues that we're struggling with, and we provided evidence--photographic and water testing evidence--repeatedly to the mine. And they stated that there was no problem. It wasn't until EGLE came in September and began to inspect the mine personally, and they finally issued a violation letter for eight environmental and ecological violations that they found, including erosion, illegal discharging, discharging into a wetland, not having a wetland permit. And also, it affected the local lake. And, as you mentioned, this all feeds directly into Fleming Creek Watershed.
David Fair: As a result, the residents impacted have gathered together and created a website called "Help Save Our Wells." And it's a grassroots organization. And where are you going to take that from here?
Amy Olszewski: Well, we are still gathering evidence. And the reason we're still gathering evidence is because they are still pumping every single day. At this point, as you mentioned, the township has asked for a temporary injunction. And it's up to the judge to decide whether that would happen or not. But in the meantime, we're still having the groundwater pumping out of the ground. We still have the discharge and the damage, the environmental damage. And even if everything goes through, we still want to seek some sort of reclamation, like, "Let's save the wetlands. Let's try to get the lake back to what it was. Let's make sure that we're aware of what our aquifer is." No one's really done a true hydrogeological study of the aquifer. We know that, in Washtenaw County, many of the areas in Washtenaw County are "well first," meaning that the aquifer is very delicate and sensitive. And so, we want to make sure that we're protecting the groundwater for everybody.
David Fair: This is 89 one WEMU, and we're talking with Amy Olszewski. She is an Ann Arbor Township resident and advocate and among those seeking to save water wells in the township in what has now become a legal fight with a gravel mining company. A Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy spokesperson says it is directly responsible for the drying of the wells. Now, Amy, it was last Thursday that the township filed a 25-page complaint and lawsuit against Mid Michigan Materials, USG Properties and AMC-WSG LLC. Among the allegations are that Mid Michigan Materials has violated its zoning permit as you mentioned, it's deprived residents of their water supply and impaired and destroyed waterways. Now we mentioned the Fleming Creek and the Fleming Creekshed. Has there been noticeable difference in the health of Fleming Creek since you became aware that there was an issue with the mining operation?
Amy Olszewski: You know, to answer that question, I think it really would require somebody from the Huron River Watershed Council. I am aware that they put up monitoring of the wetlands and the lake and Fleming Creek just recently, so that would be in the last two months. I do know that every time I walk in Parker Mill Park, I always think about the fact that Fleming Creek running by me is my water that I could drink and the water I need for my shower. You mentioned that that EGLE did cite for violations. And what they said that was happening to Fleming Creek was that there were a diminishment of the streams and lake. And so, I'm sure that EGLE is working with the Huron River Watershed Council to look at the health of Fleming Creek Watershed.
David Fair: On Monday, attorneys representing the three entities named in the suit filed a legal response opposing the motion to halt operations. In the response, they declared no one has been without water as a result of their operations, that they've been responsive in addressing residential water access issues, and there is no emergency that would justify halting operations. What is your takeaway from that response?
Amy Olszewski: You know, I asked them to talk to my neighbor who lived off of bottled water for multiple weeks while the well was being figured out. I really am curious how they can state that our water's fine when one of my neighbors actually had to access the lower aquifer to find her any water at all. And what they discovered, like many parts of Michigan, the lower aquifer is full of arsenic and other heavy metals and hazardous materials that now she has to use a reverse osmosis machine to just drink her water. So, to say that we have water doesn't mean that we have quality water. Also, I would point out that they stated that by closing the mine it would halt all operations of fixing I-275. That's unbelievable. Sand and gravel is ubiquitous in the state, and you don't have to mine in someone's backyard.
David Fair: I do want to note that WEMU has reached out to Mid Michigan Materials and offered equal time to address these issues, and we continue to await a response. Right now ,we're talking with Amy Olszewski, whose own well has been impacted, and she's part of a grassroots group of citizens seeking to save the area's well and water quality. Amy, the suit injunction request from Ann Arbor Township was filed in Washtenaw County Circuit Court. The matter is being overseen by Judge Timothy Connors, who, to my knowledge, has not yet scheduled any hearings or issued an order. Is that your understanding as well?
Amy Olszewski: Yes.
David Fair: Ann Arbor Township has requested quick intervention from the court. And I hate to play the what if game, but what if the court throws out the lawsuit and allows the mining operation to continue? Have you considered a citizen response to that possibility?
Amy Olszewski: You know, we have considered a citizen response, and we are currently filing to organize as an LLC. We would love it if the mine would just play by the rules. You know, obviously, this mine came in. They said they would not use groundwater. They said they would not lower the water table. They immediately began de-watering and discharging into our wetlands and into Fleming Creek Watershed. They simply disregard every request. We have to change their mining operations back to what Mr. Vella did, which is dredging and not de-watering. So, it's not that we're against mining in any way. It's just this mine in this location with this mine operator is not working out for our community.
David Fair: As you mentioned, you have seen problems in your own well. You have other neighbors that are going through other issues and are drinking bottled water. Further down the road, do you anticipate that maybe class action status would be appropriate in trying to recover the financial and environmental losses that we've outlined here today?
Amy Olszewski: You know, we're very thankful in our community that we have such wonderful neighbors. We have engineers. We have media experts. And we also have lawyers. So, we do have a legal group as part of our citizen group. And I really leave it to them to make those kind of decisions. And they're advising us always on how we should proceed forward in order to protect our land, our land value, and to protect our environment.
David Fair: Well, I guess the next step is to wait and see how Washtenaw County Circuit Court rules. We will have opportunity to continue these conversations as the issues move forward. Thank you so much for the time today, Amy. I appreciate it.
Amy Olszewski: Thank you so much. And, again, thank you on behalf of all of my neighbors.
David Fair: That is Amy Olszewski. For more information on what the citizens of Ann Arbor Township are doing, visit the website they've created at Help Save our Wells dot com. And you can visit our website at WEMU dot org, and we'll get you more information and linked up everywhere you need to go. Again, WEMU has reached out to Mid Michigan Materials with an offer of equal time on this matter. We're still awaiting a response, but when we get one, we'll let you know. Issues of the Environment is produced in partnership with the Office of the Washtenaw County Water Resources Commissioner, and you hear it every Wednesday. I'm David Fair, and this is your community NPR station, 89 one WEMU FM Ypsilanti.
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