Cherishing Our Drinkable Sea
“It’s like an ocean, but it’s fresh water, and you can drink it!”
Time and again I’ve heard this phrase (or one very similar) from East and West coastal people visiting Lake Superior for the first time.
Probably because I was born here and knew our Big Lake for a long time before I ever met the saltwater seas, I never quite understood that fascination of fresh water acting “like an ocean.”
But of course there are mighty surf-able waves, ships almost three-football-fields long and an endless horizon of blue sky meeting steely waters – it’s Lake Superior, for goodness sakes.
Now that I’m older and wiser – well, I’m older – there’s a different part of that phrase that catches my attention: “and you can drink it!”
Our February/March issue just came off the press with a State of the Lake Special Report on “Our Working Water – Big Lake to Faucet and Back.” While doing the story, I got the chance to examine our drinking water situation and how our cities – large or tiny – have invested heavily to make sure the water we put back into the Lake doesn’t endanger us taking it out to use again (and all the while protecting our water, wildlife and environment).
As I was researching and writing, we were hearing about the horrible situation in Flint, Michigan. That was not the only water situation that came to my mind. I recalled stories about the 1 billion or so people who do not have access to clean water, of villagers in some African countries walking miles with 40 pound or heavier containers of water every day, of the California droughts, and of the lack of running water in homes (not voluntarily) within our own country, especially on some reservations.
We are not immune from aging pipes and water contaminants, and our “drinkable” sea remains so only as long as we remain diligent. There is no denying that the glaciers gifted our northern neighborhood with a 3-quadrillion-gallon miracle. It’s good to know that our communities keep that in mind. We appreciate and love it because our sweetwater sea is “like an ocean,” but we cherish it because “you can drink it.”
In the coming weeks from time to time, I’d like to share stories that relate to our State of the Lake report and our drinking and wastewater situations around the Lake. This week, UpperMichigansSource.com asked: How safe is Marquette’s drinking water? Looking good is the conclusion. Read the February/March issue to find out more about other parts of the Lake, and email edit@lakesuperior.com or comment below with any links you find to stories about regional water use and resources.