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Michigan's annual water use data

Michigan's annual water use data

Michigan and the other Great Lakes states and provinces have enacted laws that require major water users to report water usage within the Great Lakes Basin.  This information facilitates managing water resources in a more integrated manner and supports the legal basis for prohibiting diversions of Great Lakes water to other regions of the country.

All water users with the capacity to withdraw over 100,000 gallons per day must report their annual water use to the State of Michigan by April 1 of each year. Water use data is compiled by EGLE and shared publicly and with the other states and provinces within the Great Lakes basin.  

Michigan total water use by category for 2024

Consumptive use is the portion of a withdrawal that isn't returned locally due to evaporation, incorporation into products, or transport out of the Great Lakes Basin. Units are in millions of Gallons per Day (GPD).

Category Total Water Use Consumptive Water Use
Agricultural irrigation 246.5 221.8
Commercial 4.3 0.4
Electric power generation 5,435.3 61.3
Industrial 609 60.9
Livestock 42.5 5.6
Non-agricultural irrigation 32.8 29.5
Private household supply 187 18.7
Public supply 885.4 110.7
Other 12.7 0.01

Michigan water use data by county

Spreadsheets include separate tabs by category of use.

Michigan water use data by facility

Additional data

Water use data for each of the Great Lakes Basin states and provinces is available in the Great Lakes Regional Water Use Database maintained by the Great Lakes Commission.