Groveland Twp.’After a few weeks of silence, Perryville Road and Dixie Highway residents heard an all too familiar sound.
The dewatering pumps at Midway Sand & Gravel 12527 Dixie Highway are back on again at least part time, adding one more chapter in a long battle over water, gravel and property rights.
‘Right now the pumps are pumping during the day, but are shut off during the evening,? said Robert DePalma, Groveland Township supervisor. ‘Midway is pumping water but just a fraction of what they were (pumping) in the past.? Currently the water is pumped into a adjacent recharge moat near the site in an attempt to allow the water to filter back into the ground. Since 2001 residents near the mine contend that Midway Sand & Gravel’s pumping of more than 2.5 million gallons per day of water from the gravel pit caused a significant loss of water level in their ponds and wells. In February 2003 after years of bantering, Groveland Township voted to revoke the mining permit due to noncompliance with a plan endorsed by the Township Board to restore the neighbors? water and its continued impediments on ground water.
Then earlier this spring the pumping stopped, and in April 2003 Oakland County Circuit Judge Richard D. Kuhn set a hearing for testimony from several key individuals including Groveland Township Supervisor Robert DePalma, property owner Homer Tolliver and several residents. However, the hearing was delayed with no date set for another hearing.
‘We are in the process of attempting to insure none of the water is being discharged off their site,? said Thomas Plunkett, Groveland Township attorney. ‘If the water remains on site, and pumped on site, it’ll be recharged back into the ground.?
A consent judgment with Midway Sand & Gravel mandates that the mine may not unreasonably interfere with ground water uses by neighbors of the mine, added Plunkett.
‘The key word is unreasonable pumping. ‘if they are keeping the water on their own land then it has a chance to go back into the ground.?
The Oakland County Drain Commission notified Midway Sand & Gravel that pumping must be halted after water was pumped on nearby Department of Natural Resources land. The pumping stopped in April, but not before millions of gallons had flowed onto state land, causing extensive damage to the property.
While the pumping may have partially stopped, neighbors near the Midway Sand & Gravel pit continue to grapple with the results of years of dewatering.
Mark Shaffer, along with about 20 neighbors of the mine have battled with Midway Sand & Gravel since 1998 and say the pumping has been costly.
‘I’d say damages are easily $100,000 to about 18 homes,? said Shaffer. ‘Since the pumping started at least nine wells have been replaced and several are on the verge of going out.?
The extent of the damage did not stop at just the wells, added Shaffer. Private ponds and wetlands have also suffered.
‘Some places on the DNR property ditches three-to-four feet wide and a foot deep have been cut in the ground from the pumping,? said Shaffer. ‘We neighbors just shake our heads at the whole mess.?