Michigan Compiled Laws

Mich. Comp. Laws § 324.32502 (2026)

Unpatented lake bottomlands and unpatented made lands in Great Lakes; construction of part.

✓ current as of July 2026

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NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION ACT

Act 451 of 1994

324.32502 Unpatented lake bottomlands and unpatented made lands in Great Lakes; construction of part.

Sec. 32502.

The lands covered and affected by this part are all of the unpatented lake bottomlands and unpatented made lands in the Great Lakes, including the bays and harbors of the Great Lakes, belonging to the state or held in trust by it, including those lands that have been artificially filled in. The waters covered and affected by this part are all of the waters of the Great Lakes within the boundaries of the state. This part shall be construed so as to preserve and protect the interests of the general public in the lands and waters described in this section, to provide for the sale, lease, exchange, or other disposition of unpatented lands and the private or public use of waters over patented and unpatented lands, and to permit the filling in of patented submerged lands whenever it is determined by the department that the private or public use of those lands and waters will not substantially affect the public use of those lands and waters for hunting, fishing, swimming, pleasure boating, or navigation or that the public trust in the state will not be impaired by those agreements for use, sales, lease, or other disposition. The word "land" or "lands" as used in this part refers to the aforesaid described unpatented lake bottomlands and unpatented made lands and patented lands in the Great Lakes and the bays and harbors of the Great Lakes lying below and lakeward of the natural ordinary high-water mark, but this part does not affect property rights secured by virtue of a swamp land grant or rights acquired by accretions occurring through natural means or reliction. For purposes of this part, the ordinary high-water mark shall be at the following elevations above sea level, international Great Lakes datum of 1955: Lake Superior, 601.5 feet; Lakes Michigan and Huron, 579.8 feet; Lake St. Clair, 574.7 feet; and Lake Erie, 571.6 feet.

History: Add. 1995, Act 59, Imd. Eff. May 24, 1995

Compiler's Notes:

For transfer of authority, powers, duties, functions, and responsibilities of the Land and Water Management Division, with the exception of the farmland and open space preservation program, natural rivers program, and Michigan information resource inventory system, to the Director of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, see E.R.O. No. 1995-16, compiled at MCL 324.99901 of the Michigan Compiled Laws.

PopularName Notes:

Act 451

PopularName Notes:

NREPA

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 5 cases, 2004–2011 · leading case: Glass v. Goeckel, 703 N.W.2d 58 (Mich. 2005).

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Glass v. Goeckel, 703 N.W.2d 58 (Mich. 2005). · cites it 5× “MCL 324.32502 provides: The lands covered and affected by this part are all of the unpatented lake bottomlands and unpatented made lands in the Great Lakes, including the bays and harbors of the Great Lakes, belonging to the state or held in trust by, it, including those lands…”

Burleson v. Dep't of Env't Quality, 808 N.W.2d 792 (Mich. Ct. App. 2011). · cites it 29× “Petitioner appeals by leave granted from a circuit court order that affirmed respondent’s declaratory ruling that its jurisdiction as set forth in MCL 324.32502, a provision of the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act (NREPA), MCL 324.”

Glass v. Goeckel, 683 N.W.2d 719 (Mich. Ct. App. 2004). · cites it 5× “The trial court held that plaintiff was entitled to freely traverse the *31 “shore of Lake Huron lying below and lakewards of the natural ordinary high water mark as specifically defined in MCL 324.32502.” We conclude otherwise, and therefore reverse the trial court’s order…”

Glass v. Goeckel, 683 N.W.2d 719 (Mich. Ct. App. 2004). · cites it 5× “The trial court held that plaintiff was entitled to freely traverse the "shore of Lake Huron lying below and *721 lakewards of the natural ordinary high water mark as specifically defined in MCL 324.32502." We conclude otherwise, and therefore reverse the trial court's order…”

United States v. Marion L. Kincaid Trust, 463 F. Supp. 2d 680 (E.D. Mich. 2006). · cites it 2× “8 feet IGDL based on the 1955 survey for certain regulatory purposes, see Mich. Comp. Laws § 324.32502 ; but the Michigan courts reject that delineation for the purpose of determining the rights, privileges, obligations, and responsibilities of shoreline landowners.”

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