MARQUETTE, Mich. (WZMQ) – The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy held a two day training conference, starting on Wednesday at the Northern Center. Topics such as drinking water protection, floodplain regulations, underground storage, and environmental emergency responses for UP communities were all covered throughout its sessions, with over 265 people registered for this years event.
“The conference itself is primarily targeted towards people that are regulated by EGLE,” said Jim Ostrowski, the outreach manager at EGLE. “But, we do have a lot of community associations and leaders that are going to be here.” Attendees were given the resources to train in a personal setting compared to the departments typical route for these operations.
“EGLE offers a lot of online training,” said Ostrowski. “This conference creates an opportunity for people to meet with our staff one-on-one.” EGLE has worked alongside many Upper Peninsula environmental groups across its years. The Superior Watershed Partnership has continued to benefit from the department, who is able to provide funding for a number of projects.
“Over the years, we’ve collected over 23,000 scrap tires from around the UP,” said Tyler Penrod, a program manager at Superior Watershed Partnership. “We’ve been able to collect those and recycle them, and that’s all with funding and support from EGLE.”
The conference’s schedule for Wednesday and Thursday include a day of available presentations and a day of workshops.
