Michigan DEQ Gets New Name, Director Liesl Clark Joins Detroit Today
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is reshuffling the MDEQ in an effort to respond more quickly to widespread water contamination and climate change.
Liesl Clark is taking over a state agency that has been in turmoil since 2015 when information came out that Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) water regulators let Flint switch drinking water sources without adding corrosion control chemicals. That’s what allowed lead to leach into the pipes supplying the city’s drinking water. Now, there’s a PFAS issue in drinking water that seems to be popping up all over Michigan.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is reshuffling the MDEQ in an effort to respond more quickly to widespread water contamination and climate change. As of Monday, the DEQ is now the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE).
The department’s new director, Liesl Clark, joins Detroit Today with Stephen Henderson to talk about the goals of the new department and how she’s handling the problems she’s inherited.
Click on the audio player above to hear that conversation.