Dale Buist knew running a commercial greenhouse would pose challenges. He just never expected a water shortage to be among them. Not in Michigan, with its vast aquatic riches.
Yet a couple of irrigation wells yielded only a trickle. And one quickly ran dry.
He installed equipment to capture rainwater for the plants. Then a drinking water well failed. Finally, Buist spent $350,000 connecting to a pipeline that supplies nearby Grand Rapids.
“My greenhouse sits 12 miles from Lake Michigan, one of the greatest sources of fresh water in the world,” the Ottawa County grower said. “And I didn’t have enough.”
His struggle, resulting from a geological quirk and heavy demand from farmers, developers and homeowners in a surging section of southwest Michigan, is a cautionary tale for a state counting on its reputation as a water paradise to be a competitive economic advantage as climate change afflicts hotter, drier regions.
