Tuesday 6pm, February 21^st in Ishpeming at the Country Village Convention Center

The Marquette County Road Commission has presented an application for a series of permits to the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. The permit application proposes the construction of County Road 595,  a 21 mile road that would connect US-41 with County Road AAA.  The DEQ states in their press release, “…A significant goal of DEQ’s review is to solicit comments from the public, Department of Natural Resources and the United States Environmental Protection Agency on the reasonably foreseeable benefits and detriments of the proposed road, as well as feasible and prudent alternatives to achieve the purpose of the road.”

County Road 595 is almost identical to an application for the proposed “Woodland Road” submitted by Kennecott Eagle Minerals in 2009. The Woodland Road application was then withdrawn in May of 2010 after the project received criticism from state and federal agencies about its unnecessary impacts on water, wetlands, and fisheries. After the application was withdrawn, a “new” project was put forward that very closely resembles the original Woodland Road. This new project, County Road 595, was applied for by the County Road Commission as opposed to Kennecott. The potential negative impacts still exist at the same level as those voiced for the Woodland Road.

YDWP has numerous concerns about the construction of this county road. Click on the document below to get a basic understanding of some of the concerns.
CR 595 Comments

County residents are encouraged review the application information by clicking on either of the links:
http://www.michigan.gov/deq/0,4561,7-135-3307_29692_24403-269958–,00.html or
http://www.co.marquette.mi.us/departments/road_commission/county_road_595.htm

Concerns can be in voiced in any of three ways listed below:
1. Written public comments are accepted through March 2^nd and can be mailed to the
MDEQ
420 5th Street,
Gwinn, MI 49841

2. Electronic comments can be made by clicking on this link:
http://www.deq.state.mi.us/lwmpnh/commentsform.asp?aid=11520075&at=ph

3. Verbal comments can be made at the scheduled hearing in Ishpeming. Below is a map and address.
County Village Banquet Facility
1011 North Road
Ispheming, MI

The deadline for completing the review of the application permits is JUNE 15^th and can be extended to JULY 9^th by mutual agreement of DEQ and Marquette County Road Commission.

For additional information, please contact Steve Casey, DEQ Water Resources Division at (906) 346-8535.