Michigan has documented PFAS contamination at more than 200 sites, according to the Michigan PFAS Action Response Team (MPART). That makes it one of the most heavily contaminated states in the country by site count, though the density partly reflects Michigan’s aggressive identification and mapping efforts, which are ahead of most states.
How Michigan Got Here
Michigan’s PFAS contamination comes from three overlapping sources.
Industrial manufacturing: Michigan has a long industrial history that included heavy use of PFAS-containing products. The most high-profile case is Wolverine World Wide, a shoe manufacturer in Belmont and Plainfield Township (Kent County), that used Scotchgard (a 3M PFAS product) in leather tanning and disposed of industrial waste in ways that contaminated local groundwater. Wolverine settled with affected residents for $69.5 million in 2020 and has been under state oversight for remediation.
Military installations: AFFF (aqueous film-forming foam) used for fire training at military airfields contained high concentrations of PFOS and PFOA. Camp Grayling, former Wurtsmith Air Force Base (Iosco County), and Selfridge Air National Guard Base (Macomb County) are among the documented sources. AFFF contamination tends to create plumes that move with groundwater, sometimes reaching private wells and municipal supplies miles from the original use site.
Landfill leachate: PFAS from consumer products accumulates in landfills and leaches into surrounding groundwater. This is a less localized source but contributes to background contamination levels across the state.
Flint and the Lead Crisis
Any discussion of Michigan water quality has to acknowledge Flint. The Flint lead crisis began in 2014 when the city switched its water source to the Flint River to save money, without implementing proper corrosion control treatment. The more corrosive Flint River water leached lead from the city’s distribution pipes and household plumbing into tap water throughout the city.
The result: elevated blood lead levels in Flint children, a public health disaster, and a federal emergency declaration. Legal settlements, criminal charges, and federal infrastructure funding followed.
As of 2023, Flint’s water meets federal lead standards. The city completed an extensive lead service line replacement program. The lead risk today in Flint is more about old internal building plumbing in pre-1978 housing than about the distribution system, which was largely rebuilt.
Flint doesn’t have a PFAS problem on top of the lead history, but it’s worth noting that both crises reflect the same underlying issue: aging infrastructure and insufficient monitoring in a community with limited political leverage. The lessons apply across the state and country.
Key Contamination Areas
Kent County (Belmont and Plainfield Township): The Wolverine World Wide contamination affected residential wells and some municipal supplies. Private wells in the affected plume area have been tested and connected to municipal supply or equipped with treatment. If you’re in this area and on a private well, contact MPART or Kent County Health Department.
Iosco County (Oscoda, near former Wurtsmith AFB): The PFAS plume from former Wurtsmith Air Force Base (closed in 1993) has contaminated municipal and private wells in the Oscoda area. The Michigan National Guard and Air Force have been involved in remediation. Residents have been provided alternative water sources or treatment. The plume continues to be monitored.
Antrim County: Documented contamination in a water supply system, which was subject to a state settlement.
Macomb County (near Selfridge ANGB): Selfridge Air National Guard Base has documented PFAS contamination from AFFF use. Monitoring of surrounding community wells is ongoing.
Michigan’s Standards vs. Federal
Michigan adopted its own PFAS MCLs in 2020, before the EPA finalized federal standards. Michigan’s rules cover seven PFAS compounds. For PFOA, Michigan set 8 ppt. For PFOS, 16 ppt. For PFNA, 6 ppt.
The EPA’s 2024 MCLs set 4 ppt for PFOA and PFOS individually. For four other PFAS compounds regulated as a group, the EPA uses a hazard index calculation. The federal standard is tighter for PFOA and PFOS than Michigan’s original limits for those compounds. Michigan already regulates compounds not yet covered federally.
Both standards are a long way from the EWG’s health guideline of 1 ppt, which reflects the level where some health organizations believe risk becomes non-trivial over a lifetime.
What to Do If You’re in an Affected Area
Start with MPART’s mapping tool at michigan.gov/pfasresponse. The map shows all documented contamination sites, associated plumes, and affected water systems. If you’re within three miles of a documented source and on a private well, testing is the right call.
Contact the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) or your county health department before paying for a test on your own. In documented contamination zones, the state or responsible parties may offer or have already conducted free testing.
For treatment while regulatory remediation proceeds, an NSF/ANSI 58-certified reverse osmosis system removes PFAS at the point of use. This gives you clean drinking water at the kitchen tap while the bigger remediation question gets sorted out over years. NSF 53-certified high-capacity activated carbon is also documented to reduce PFAS, with less certainty of removal rates than RO.
See our full PFAS contaminant guide and our how to remove PFAS guide for the filter details.
For Flint-area residents concerned about lead: an NSF 53-certified filter rated for lead, or an NSF 58 RO, handles lead at the tap for pre-1986 internal plumbing concerns.