Rural Michigan

Unlike Michigan, the buckeye state regulates septic systems and provides money to fix the ones leaking sewage into waterways. Could such a program in Michigan address the pollution that fouls our lakes and streams?

Masking is an issue today, but it will end soon enough. Political manipulation is a far more lasting ill.

Law enforcement and treatment experts chart a rising toll from meth, from overdose deaths to families ripped apart. Cheaper and more pure versions now come from Mexican labs, and there are not enough treatment resources in rural counties.

Michigan farmers irrigate with 187 billion gallons of groundwater a year, double what was used a decade earlier. Is the state prepared for more?

Authors Razel Jones and Daniel Abbott joined Bridge Michigan on Friday to discuss their collaborative memoir about growing up in rural west Michigan.

Families are pulling their kids out of class and moving to neighboring districts as they shop for schools that match the face mask policies they prefer.

It would be healthy for our democracy and for the voices of all citizens to see a blend of urban and rural people in legislative districts. Then elected officials would really need to consider everyone's needs more evenly.

Hospitals lauded federal vaccine requirements that cover virtually all Michigan healthcare workers as a win for patient safety. But workers’ unions warned the regulations could force a worker exodus from an already short-staffed industry.

A new commission has spent weeks drawing districts in rural areas of Michigan, but has set aside only five days for southeast Michigan. Some fear they could be in a rush to complete the process.

Visitors to public lands and outdoor recreation are overwhelmingly white. State land managers say they want to reduce this “nature gap,” while African-American and Latino groups are encouraging more exploration of Michigan waters and trails.

After years of collecting samples from killed deer that overwhelmed state resources while failing to provide the information biologists need to track chronic wasting disease, state officials are taking a more targeted approach.

Authors and Michigan natives Razel Jones and Daniel Abbott will join Bridge Michigan for a discussion of their collaborative memoir. Join us on Zoom from noon to 1 p.m. September 24. Bridge members receive a free e-version of the book.

Public health advocates and bipartisan lawmakers are advocating for new funding to fix the failing septics that leech fecal bacteria, viruses and toxins into Michigan’s waterways.

Shelters emptied last year. Now one mid-Michigan shelter is near capacity. Officials say owners are having to give up their pets because they can’t afford them.

A federal study finds herds in Michigan and other states have virus antibodies in their blood. That’s more of an indication of its spread than cause for concern. The deer are doing just fine.

Most of Michigan has been spared the COVID surge sweeping nation. The counties deemed to have high or significant rates also tend to lag in vaccinations.

The state has permission to kill up to 9,650 birds and destroy up to 1,400 nests, a move state wildlife managers hope will reduce pressure on fish populations valued by anglers. Opponents say the birds are scapegoated for a fish collapse they didn’t cause.

A death at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore is the most recent incident in a summer of tragedy in Michigan’s remote wildernesses. That’s stretched resources and has lawmakers thinking of new funding sources.

With campsites at state and national parks hard to book in a pandemic, creative property owners with very particular passions are renting out space through sites like Hipcamp and Tentrr. One official called it the “wild, wild West.”

One of the state’s signature crops is facing its second year of decline. Growers weighed whether the work of the small harvest would be worth it and experts are wondering what it means for the industry.