Water Quality Speciality License Plate

We have all seen specialty license plates as we drive about. Some support specific college or universities, others have the sport teams on them like the Lions or the Pistons, others a duck or a moose. These different license plates cost a little more to put on your vehicle, but the proceeds of that purchase go to support a special cause.

One of these specialty license plates—the one with the sailboat—is all about water quality. The “Protecting Our Water” specialty license plate costs $35. $25 of every license plate purchased supports three programs of the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE): the Michigan Shorelines Stewards Program, Michigan Paddle Stewards, and the Michigan Clean Waters Corps (MiCorps).

In addition to partnering with Michigan Shoreline Stewards and Michigan Paddle Stewards to help educate residents about ways to protect clean water, HRWC has been on the MiCorps leadership team for over 15 years. MiCorps provides support to groups across the state for collecting and sharing water quality data for use in water resources management and protection programs. Proceeds from the water quality license plates pay for grants that allow local governments to host stream and river cleanups.

HRWC is responsible for administering these MiCorps cleanup grants. We create the proposal process, review the proposals, and then work with the grant recipients to accomplish their cleanups. By purchasing this license plate, you support HRWC by helping to fund one of the programs that we lead.

Check out this article from EGLE for more information and instructions on how to get “Protecting Our Water” license plate.

Interested in a MiCorps clean up grant? The next round of proposals won’t happen until January, but you can learn more about MiCorps Cleanup Grants here.