When Governor Jennifer M. Granholm signed legislation marking Michigan's passage of the Great Lakes Compact in July 2008, the package of bills also established a new water management process to guide wise use of our state's water resources.

The new process has already attracted national attention.

Michigan recently received a 2009 innovations award from the Council of State Governments (CSG) for its new water withdrawal assessment process. The CSG, whose membership includes governors, state legislators and appointed officials from across the nation, uses the award to recognize new, creative and effective programs that address significant regional issues and are transferable to other states.

Michigan's new water laws establish scientific resource-based protections for water withdrawal, create public input opportunities and require permits for large water withdrawals from lakes, streams or groundwater. They also incorporate water conservation as an integral part of Michigan's water protections.

A key component to help determine the ecological impacts of any proposed water withdrawal was the creation of an online water withdrawal assessment tool that provides an initial, screening-level assessment of the impact of a potential large-quantity water withdrawal on nearby stream and river ecosystems.

Development of the tool resulted from a collaborative effort that included the U.S. Geological Survey, Michigan State University, and the Michigan Departments of Environmental Quality and Natural Resources.

Under the law, use of the assessment tool for registering a new large-quantity water withdrawal is mandatory. A large-quantity withdrawal is defined as one with capacity of greater than 70 gallons per minute -- this means that household-level wells do not need to use the tool.

Here's how it works. A potential water withdrawal applicant will access the tool online and input site-specific parameters, such as location, pumping rate, depth of water and other pertinent information. It operates within a computer geographic information system and can be used to examine potential withdrawal sites anywhere in the state.

It is designed with some safeguards so that when a proposed withdrawal clearly poses little or no risk to nearby stream and river ecosystems, the user can receive immediate online state approval and registration of the proposed withdrawal.

But when, instead, a proposed water withdrawal triggers concerns of risk to the ecosystems, the screening tool instructs the user to request a more detailed review of their proposal by the DEQ.

"An important aspect of the assessment tool is that it also considers the geographic variability of Michigan's stream flows and fish community types when making a determination," said Dr. Paul Seelbach, who is statewide research manager for the DNR Fisheries Division.

Using current scientific understanding, scientists created mathematical models of stream flow, groundwater dynamics and fish ecology. The stream flow model uses information on soils, geology, land use and precipitation to predict how much flow is available in each stream segment. The groundwater model uses information about geology, well depth, pumping rate and distance from nearby streams to estimate how much a well will reduce the flow in nearby streams. And the fish ecology model determines how a reduction in stream flow is likely to impact the types and abundance of fish that live there.

"Fish populations are a surrogate representing the health of the overall stream ecosystem," Seelbach said. "All streams and rivers of the state are classified by size, water temperature and fish assemblage. Each fish assemblage type responds differently to the loss of water. For each type, the legislature, using the available science, has determined a maximum amount of water that can be withdrawn before causing an adverse resource impact, which is prohibited under state law."

The assessment tool places each proposed new withdrawal into one of four possible risk zones -- A through D. Zone A has little risk of causing an adverse resource impact, while Zone D means an adverse resource impact likely would occur in the stream. Zones B and C lie between these extremes, indicating increasing risk.

"The tool advises the user what zone their proposed withdrawal is in, and provides instruction on what to do in each case," said Seelbach.

Withdrawals in Zone A through C can proceed (although some additional steps in the process are required for zones B and C). Withdrawals that screen into zones C and D must request a more accurate, site-level review from the DEQ before gaining approval (if appropriate). A proposed withdrawal in Zone D is prohibited.

The criteria also protects withdrawals near a cold-transitional stream or river, where even relatively small reductions in flow can alter their ecosystems so they no longer will support cold water species like trout. Proposed withdrawals from cold-transitional rivers and streams require more detailed review by the DEQ.

In some cases, where the risk to aquatic resources is deemed small, the assessment tool is designed to register a new or increased large capacity withdrawal online within minutes. The results page provides a quick link to submitting a registration. A registration is valid for 18 months; the withdrawal capacity must be installed within that 18 months or the registration becomes void.

The assessment tool is functioning as designed.

Between July 9, 2009, when its use became mandatory, and Nov. 30, about 90 proposed large quantity withdrawals were processed through the tool. Nearly 70 registered their withdrawal without the need of further review.

The rest, which are in areas where the proposed withdrawal has a higher chance of causing an adverse resource impact, are receiving a detailed review. DEQ officials anticipate almost all of these will be allowed to proceed; some with modifications to protect the neighboring streams.

The water withdrawal assessment tool may be found online at: www.miwwat.org. DEQ personnel are very interested in the experience of users. If you have suggestions for improving the tool, or other comments, please submit them through the "feedback" quick link found on the results page. Also, answers to frequently asked questions about the tool are provided at http://web2.msue.msu.edu/bulletins/Bulletin/PDF/WQ60.pdf.