PHOTO COURTESY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF THE ENVIRONMENT, GREAT LAKES AND ENERGY
EGLE has issued an announcement asking property owners along Lakes Michigan, Huron, St. Clair and Erie to remove temporary sandbags along the coast originally approved for emergency use.
During 2019 and 2020, properties along the Great Lakes faced risks due to unprecedentedly high water levels. As a result, 143 temporary permits for the emergency use of sandbags to help prevent further shoreline erosion were issued. Now, those who installed the bags have been contacted to remove them, with the exception of Lake Superior, where water levels have not receded beyond the ordinary high-water mark. The bags are normally prohibited because they break down and release plastic components into the lakes. The removal process is simple — owners can simply slit the bags and remove the burlap/plastic material, leaving the sand on the shore.
More information can be found at Great Lakes Water Levels. Questions from property owners, including requests to maintain sandbags as essential to dune stability, can be addressed to the EGLE district office that covers your county.
