Summary: Groundwater is a crucially important but often overlooked resource in the Great Lakes region. As a common-pool resource, the region’s aquifers should have a well-structured set of governing principles to guide their sustainable and equitable use. We ask, “but do they?”

We assessed hydrogeology knowledge, legal structures, and the institutions in six Great Lakes states including the tribes that share their geography. We conclude that the current structure, cobbled together over decades in response to different kinds of stressors and crises, does not adequately provide for a participatory and inclusive groundwater management system. It is not founded in adequate technical knowledge everywhere, and it is not coordinated around local, shared aquifers. Thus it is not constructed to best connect water users to the region’s future prosperity.

An incredible resource lies beneath our feet and connects us all. Freshwater, with the support of the Joyce Foundation, is working to bring attention and care to groundwater for our shared prosperity and for generations to come.

Biography: Carrie has been Research and Policy Director at Freshwater since 2016 after having been a field geologist for 24 years, 22 of those with the Minnesota Geological Survey and two with the DNR, Division of Lands and Minerals. She also served as the science reports lead for the County Geologic Atlas program at the DNR for 2 years. She has been Adjunct Graduate Faculty in the Dept. of Earth and Environmental Sciences at the U of M for 30 years.  She applies her understanding of glacial geology and landscape evolution to shape policy and technical approaches for managing surface water and groundwater, avoiding hazards, and  using resources wisely.