District Health Department No. 10 is ceasing their in-house water testing lab operations at the end of the day on Sept. 25. All samples must be received by that day, with the last night for overnight shipping being on Sept. 24.
The lab tests for bacteria in drinking water to ensure it abides by state standards through the Safe Drinking Water Act.
DHD No. 10 is the largest health department in Michigan, covering 10 of the state's northwestern counties.
On Facebook, Health Officer Kevin Hughes said it's important for everyone to have clean drinking water but, "Public health has continued to see flat or reductions in funding across the board, and our in-house water testing lab is one of the areas impacted by this.”
Health Departments are funded through a mixture of both state and federal funding. However, departments are starting to cut programs due to federal funding being cut across 2025 and the current lack of a state budget for the 2026 fiscal year beginning on October 1st.
DHD No. 10 encourages residents to find other means for water testing, providing a list of private labs on their Facebook release.
