Michigan at a Crossroads
Break Free from Status Quo Waste Policies
Landfills Are Michigan’s Hidden Problem — and Opportunity to Address Health Risks and Slow Global Warming
Michigan’s landfills are a major source of methane — a powerful climate pollutant that drives warming in the near term. And methane isn’t the only concern: it escapes alongside toxic air pollutants that harm nearby communities — many of which are disproportionately BIPOC, low-income, or already burdened by higher-than-average rates of chronic disease. For example, the U.S. EPA found that violations at Brent Run Landfill in Genesee County led to excess emissions of hydrogen sulfide, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), volatile hazardous air pollutants (VHAPs), and methane. Hydrogen sulfide causes respiratory stress, nausea, headaches, and persistent odor nuisances that harm quality of life. VOCs and methane form ground-level ozone, which damages lung function, worsens asthma and other respiratory diseases, and can scar lung tissue with repeated exposure. VHAPs are linked to cancer, nervous system damage, and other serious health effects.
Unfortunately, Brent Run is only one example. There are 60 recorded Municipal Solid Waste Landfills in Michigan, with 1 in 3 Michiganders living within 5 miles of a landfill. That’s the same population as 4.7 Detroits — millions of people who face daily exposure to the odors, pollution, and risks that come with living next door to poorly controlled landfill methane. These sites aren’t tucked away in remote corners; they’re embedded in communities, near schools, homes, and businesses.
1 in 3 Michiganders lives within 5 miles of a landfill. Read more about local impacts of landfills in Michigan in our interactive map.
Michigan holds the unfortunate distinction of having the highest waste per capita in the nation, thanks in part to taking in waste from many other states and Canada. That makes it even more critical that state policymakers act to close the gaps in its landfill emissions rules to better control existing pollution, and take action to keep waste out of landfills so the problem doesn’t get worse.
Stronger Landfill Rules: Practical, Proven, and Long Overdue
Michigan has taken some early steps. In 2022, lawmakers required landfills to install gas collection systems sooner than federal rules demand - a sign that the state recognizes landfill methane is a problem. But even with these changes, our modeling shows Michigan’s landfills are still on track to release 10.61 million metric tons of methane by 2050. Because methane is about 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide in the short term, those emissions are roughly equal to 845 million metric tons of CO2e. Michigan’s untapped landfill reductions are at least ten times greater than the state’s annual steel industry emissions. That’s an enormous climate burden, and it underscores that the current rules don’t go far enough.
Other states — including Colorado, Maryland, Washington, and California — have already acted with stronger safeguards. Michigan risks falling behind if it doesn’t close loopholes and update outdated requirements. The good news is that there’s a built-in chance to do so: Public Act 235, signed in late 2023, directs EGLE to develop best practices for landfill methane collection and control. That guidance is the key opportunity to fix weak standards and bring Michigan in line with proven approaches elsewhere.
We modeled what happens if Michigan strengthens its rules on top of the progress already made. The results show that EGLE could nearly cut landfill methane emissions by nearly half within 25 years - realizing one of the state’s biggest opportunities to hit the brakes on near‑term climate change, protect communities from harmful air and water pollution, and strengthen local economies.
Michigan’s Communities Stand to Gain — If EGLE Creates Best Practices
Michigan’s clean energy law (Public Act 235, 2023) allows landfill gas to qualify as clean energy — but only if landfills follow best practices for methane collection and control, as defined and certified by EGLE. This safeguard matters: without it, landfills could claim “clean energy” credits while leaking huge amounts of methane. These best practices have not yet been written, leaving a critical gap: without clear standards, landfills could claim “clean energy” credits while continuing to leak significant amounts of methane.
Right now, utilities project they’ll earn 286,000 renewable energy credits every year from landfill gas. Yet Michigan’s landfills are among the nation’s highest emitters, with “super-emitter” methane plumes already detected. Unless EGLE sets clear and comprehensive best practices, taxpayers and ratepayers will end up subsidizing pollution instead of reducing it.
An example methane plume observed over a landfill in Wayne, Michigan by Carbon Mapper.
Analysis Shows Large Emissions Reductions Possible
The changes in landfill management and regulation that we modeled takes into account Michigan’s current rules and then models additional measures. EGLE has already required earlier installation of gas collection — an important start — but much more can be done. These additional measures are practical, proven, and measurable:
Better gas collection: Troubling loopholes still remain in basic gas collection practices - require gas collection wells to be spaced closer together and add automated pressure control to detect and fix leaks in real time.
Improved landfill cover: Require higher-performance daily and intermediate covers to cut emissions between waste placements, along with methane-oxidizing biocovers in certain circumstances.
Modern, comprehensive monitoring: Landfills should use drones, satellite data, and continuous monitors - faster, cheaper, and more effective than the current 100-foot-grid-walking surveys four times a year - paired with prompt methane leak repairs.
Implementing these measures statewide cuts projected emissions nearly in half (44 percent), avoiding 4.69 million metric tons of methane by 2050.
Operational upgrades to landfill emissions regulations are the fastest way to cut emissions. But the most transformative impact comes when these operational upgrades are paired with robust organics diversion, such as composting food scraps and expanding paper recycling. Together, these measures deliver deep and long-lasting emissions reductions. Read more about the impact of a comprehensive approach in our Report: Turning Down the Heat. Dive into the technical details of this analysis in our [Methodology Page]—model parameters, scenario descriptions, and assumptions.