Oxford resident Ray Van Tine is warning people about a piece of proposed legislation he claims is designed to take away the right of property owners to freely use the groundwater flowing underneath their land and give ownership of it to the state.
‘I was furious when I heard about it,? said the 68-year-old owner of Van Tine Well Drilling, located on Hummer Lake Rd., east of Baldwin Rd. ‘I don’t know how much more control they want.?
The legislation is state House Bill 5319 and if approved, it would place all Michigan groundwater into a public trust, giving the state sole ownership and control of it. The bill was introduced in September 2009 by state Rep. Dan Scripps (D-Leland), who did not return a call seeking comment.
‘This would turn groundwater into fish or deer,? said George Carr, legal counsel and lobbyist for the Muskegon-based Michigan Ground Water Association, which represents the state’s water well drilling industry.
Carr was referring to the fact that right now, all of the state’s fish and wildlife are held by the constitution in a public trust. In other words, all these creatures are owned by the state.
If a person wishes to catch a fish or shoot a game animal, whether it’s on public or private land, they are legally required to purchase a license from the state and obey regulations that dictate when the animals can be taken and how many can be harvested.
Carr fears if HB 5319 is passed, the state will impose the same type of charges and regulations on the use of groundwater.
‘We think, at the end of the day, the state is going to strip property rights from property holders and require additional state payments and/or regulations for the use of their own water,? he said. ‘We’re not talking about sending bottled water to India. We’re talking about the personal use of water on a person’s property.?
Van Tine, who’s been drilling wells for about 30 years, fears the state could, at some point, install meters on people’s private wells and charge them to use their own water.
‘I believe they can go that far if they wanted to if this legislation went through,? he said. ‘Now all of the sudden it’s the property of the government and not the land owner. Then you don’t have any rights anymore.?
Although proponents of HB 5319 ‘say that will never happen,? according to Carr, he remains skeptical based on history.
‘In every other instance where some resource has been held in the public trust, that’s exactly what’s happened,? he said.
Examples of this include oil, natural gas, gravel and timber.
‘Find me an instance where there’s a natural resource held in the public trust that you don’t have to have a permit to get or pay for,? Carr said. ‘When you look across the spectrum of Michigan, there’s nothing that I can find that’s held in the public trust that somebody doesn’t have to pay for the privilege of using or consuming.?
Under the existing laws, groundwater is the exclusive property of the land owner and he or she has the right to use it, within reason, free of charge.
‘When you own your property, you own the right to the reasonable use of the groundwater underneath it because you have a property right in that,? Carr said. ‘It does not belong to the people of the state of Michigan. It does not belong to your neighbor.?
‘Once you get that permit and once that well is drilled, you have the right in perpetuity to take as much water as you need for your reasonable use without any additional fee from the state or local government,? he continued. ‘You don’t have to put a meter on it. You don’t have to report it. It’s yours because you have a property right. This (bill) would say no, that water belongs to the people of the state of Michigan.?
Both Van Tine and Carr would like to see things stay the way they are.
They believe the current laws and regulations are more than sufficient.
‘We don’t need this. We are so regulated right now, it’s unreal,? Van Tine said
Carr noted the ‘reasonable use doctrine? has been upheld in this state for decades. That basically means a property owner has the right to the reasonable use of his or her groundwater as determined by the courts.
If a property owner engages in an unreasonable use of groundwater, they can be subject to sanctions by the courts.
Personal use of groundwater by property owners is the ‘highest right,? according to Carr.
‘That has been well-established in law,? he said. ‘In our estimation, there is no reason to change that. It’s worked extremely well in Michigan.?
Even without this bill, Van Tine said government is making things harder and harder for well drillers and residents who wish to have private wells.
‘They’re trying to shut more and more wells down as it is right now without this legislation,? he said.
For example, many communities, like Oxford Township, won’t allow new wells in areas where municipal water is available.
‘If your well goes out, they will not allow you to drill another well,? Van Tine said.
All these regulations coupled with the tough economy have put a serious crimp in Van Tine’s business.
‘I used to do 50 wells a year. Last year, I did six wells,? he said. ‘I don’t have a single job anywhere (right now). The phone never rings.?
Van Tine, who’s been drilling wells for about 30 years, fears the state could, at some point, install meters on people’s private wells and charge them to use their water.
‘I believe they can go that far if they wanted to if this legislation went through,? he said. ‘Now all of the sudden it’s the property of the government and not the land owner. Then you don’t have any rights anymore.?
Although proponents of HB 5319 ‘say that will never happen,? according to Carr, he remains skeptical based on history.
‘In every other instance where some resource has been held in the public trust that’s exactly what’s happened,? he said.
Examples of this include oil, natural gas, gravel and timber.
‘Find me an instance where there’s a natural resource held in the public trust that you don’t have to have a permit to get, pay for,? Carr said. ‘When you look across the spectrum of Michigan, there’s nothing that I can find that’s held in the public trust that somebody doesn’t have to pay for the privilege of using or consuming.?
Under the existing laws, groundwater is the exclusive property of land owner and he or she has the right to use it, within reason, free of charge.
‘When you own your property, you own the right to reasonable use the groundwater underneath it because you have a property right in that,? Carr said. ‘It does not belong to the people of the state of Michigan. It does not belong to your neighbor.?
‘Once you get that permit and once that well is drilled, you have the right in perpetuity to take as much water as you need for your reasonable use without any additional fee from the state or local government,? he continued. ‘You don’t have to put a meter on it. You don’t have to report it. It’s yours because you have a property right. This would say no that water belongs to the people of the state of Michigan.?
Both Van Tine and Carr would like to see it stay that way.
They believe the current laws and regulations are more than sufficient.
‘We don’t need this. We are so regulated right now, it’s unreal,? Van Tine said
Carr noted the ‘reasonable use doctrine? has been upheld in this state for decades. That basically means, a property owner has the right to the reasonable use of his or her groundwater as determined by the courts.
If a property owner engages in an unreasonable use of groundwater, they can be subject to sanctions by the courts.
Personal use of groundwater by property owners is the ‘highest right,? according to Carr.
‘That has been well-established in law,? he said. ‘In our estimation there is no reason to change that. It’s worked extremely well in Michigan.?
Even without this bill, Van Tine said government is making things harder and harder for well drillers and residents who wish to have private wells.
‘They’re trying to shut more and more wells down as it is right now without this legislation,? he said.
For example, many communities, like Oxford, won’t allow new wells in areas where municipal water is available.
‘If your well goes out, they will not allow you to drill another well,? Van Tine said.
All these regulations coupled with the tough economy have put a serious crimp in Van Tine’s business.
‘I used to do 50 wells a year. Last year, I did six wells,? he said. ‘I have not a single job anywhere (right now). The phone never rings.?