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Michigan environmental agency gives deadline for plume model

picture of DEQ logo
wcmu.org

The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality has given a shoe manufacturer a deadline to handle the scope of a toxic chemical plume leaking through the groundwater from the company's landfill.

The Grand Rapids Press reports that the department sent a letter to Wolverine World Wide on Friday regarding the fluorochemicals coming from the Belmont landfill. The agency is giving Wolverine until the end of January to comprehensively model the plume amid a long list of work deadlines associated with both the Belmont plume and the former Rockford tannery.

The department is overseeing Wolverine's investigation into groundwater contamination by perfluorinated chemicals from the tannery demolished in 2010. The chemicals were in a substance Wolverine used to waterproof shoes.

Wolverine says it has no issues with the deadlines.