A Michigan lawmaker wants to cut funding for a state agency due to a dispute with residents.
In a March 22 social media post, Antrim Township Republican Rep. Brian BeGole stated that the new oversight committee received numerous complaints about the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy.
“EGLE needs a lot of change and I have a feeling big budget cuts are coming for them,” wrote BeGole in an email.
According to Michigan Capitol Confidential, the Environmental Protection Agency is attempting to force a Freeland man to fill in a pond on his private property.
Two months later, on March 18, his brother Zach Wenzlick told his story to Michigan lawmakers through the House Oversight Committee. Joshua could face a $1.7 million fine if he expands his pond between 2020 and 2023.
Joshua hired Schlicht Ponds of Montrose, a licensed contractor, to excavate the pond to approximately 20 feet in one section. That depth is sufficient to support wildlife when the pond freezes over in the winter, ensuring adequate oxygen.
Joshua stocked the pond with about 700 fish, including bass, bluegill, crappie, and perch. After stocking the pond, ducks, geese, and painted turtles moved in, according to Zach.
However, in March 2023, someone filed an anonymous complaint about the property. Zach stated that state employees visited the property without notice.
Zach stated that Joshua previously informed the environmental agency that the pond was a non-regulated wetland.
Joshua received a letter in June 2023 informing him of a possible violation. According to Zach, the agency referred the case to Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel for enforcement.
According to Zach, Joshua received an order in January 2024 to restore the majority of the one-acre pond to 18 inches of water or less.
When the pond freezes over in the winter, all of the fish will die.
The environmental agency claims it conducted a lawful investigation into an alleged violation of Section 30314 of the Wetland Protection Act and Part 301 Inland Lakes and Streams of the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act.
According to officials, the agency may enter premises suspected of posing a “imminent threat to public health or the environment” or if it has reasonable cause to believe that the wetland “is a water of the United States as that term is used in… the federal water pollution control act.”
Zach explained that the family transformed vacant mining land into a pond where they can fish and enjoy nature.
“This is where we spend every 4th of July celebrating,” says Zach. “Where I wake up on Saturday mornings with my son and we go fishing with my brother.”
“All my brother has done is take previous mining wasteland and turn it into a thriving ecosystem,” Zach told me. The environmental agency has yet to respond to a request for comment. Previously, it denied all wrongdoing.
Republican Rep. Matthew Bierlein of Vassar said in a March 18 social media post that the family has been living a nightmare for over a year and is being treated like criminals across the pond.
“My office has stood with Zach and his family since last year as they face a situation no Michigander should ever have to endure,” Bierlein told reporters. “It’s not just about the pond. It’s about property rights, government accountability, and making sure that no hardworking family has to defend itself against such overreach.”
