A former toxic waste site was transformed into a U.P. tourist destination
Posted By: mlive on July 28, 2026. For more information, please click here to read the source article.
A former toxic waste site along the Keweenaw Waterway has become a busy tourist destination after an environmental cleanup overhauled one of Michigan’s historic copper mining pollution hotspots.
The redevelopment of the Keweenaw Waters Resort required removing hazardous materials, sealing contaminated mining waste beneath protective soil and vegetation, and establishing long-term environmental monitoring. It’s a major change for what was formerly a lifeless area the Houghton locals described as a “moonscape.”
“It was just exposed stamp sands for decades,” said Derek Bradway, developer and resort owner. “Just barren wasteland.”
Stamp sands are mine tailings created by crushing copper ore. The Upper Peninsula site was used for milling and smelting for more than a century, leaving behind industrial waste that damaged water quality and wildlife habitat.
In 1986, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency added the site to its list of national priorities, known as Superfund sites.
The stamp sands contained remnants of copper and other heavy metals which must be prevented from leaching into the waterway, Bradway said.
“Copper acts as a sterilizing agent. It sterilizes the benthic organisms in the water. You need those benthic organisms for the food chain,” he said. “Without the little guys at the bottom, you don’t have the big guys at the top.”
Cleanup wasn’t just about containing the contamination. It was also about returning the property to productive use. The protective cap over the stamp sands extends from one end of the resort to the other, with additional soil topping off the area.
“We lifted that land above and beyond the 8-inch cap that was already there,” Bradway said. “The stamp sand is on an average about 6 feet below anyone’s foot at this point.”
Bradway said the landscaping uses native trees and plants to help restore ecological function while stabilizing the capped site. More trees and shrubs will be planted this summer.
Today the resort features cabins, campsites and a restored shoreline with a boardwalk, fishing pier and boat rental docks. This is the resort’s second summer in business.
Transforming the “pollution hotspot” into a tourist destination is the kind of outcome that federal environmental regulators strive for, said Anne Vogel, EPA Region 5 administrator.
Although cleanup is complete, state regulators continue to monitor the capped site and maintain shoreline stability.
This redevelopment project shows what’s possible with commitment to restoring areas that “were once written off,” said Phil Roos, director of the state Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy.
Similar environmental cleanup work is now underway at the nearby Torch Lake Superfund site, where officials are addressing decades of copper mining pollution in Lake Linden.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is also pursuing a long-term cleanup plan for historic stamp sands dumped on Lake Superior shorelines in the Keweenaw Peninsula. The pulverized waste rock has spread into shipping channels and across the lakebed to Buffalo Reef, a critical spawning area for lake trout and whitefish.
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