A Michigan Golf Course Was Built on a PFAS Landfill. Here Is What Happened to the Neighbors.
In Belmont, Michigan, the Boulder Creek Golf Club sits on land where industrial companies buried tannery sludge and metal plating waste for two decades. PFAS chemicals from that waste have been leaching into soil, groundwater, and a nearby river for years. Now the state has ordered the golf course owner to pay for clean water connections to affected homes.
Here is what you need to know.
What Was Buried There
The landfill accepted tannery sludge and plating waste in the 1960s and 1970s, with historical records pointing to materials from regional tanneries and metal plating operations. Wolverine Worldwide, which has been connected to earlier PFAS litigation across the region, has long been tied to tannery waste in the Rockford and Belmont area. HoodlineHoodline
Northeast Gravel Company previously operated the landfill. Boulder Creek Development Corporation acquired the property in 1996 and redeveloped it into a golf course and residential neighborhood. Insurance Journal
How Bad Is the Contamination
A January 2019 sample of tannery waste at the site measured approximately 42,370,000 parts per trillion of PFOA and PFOS combined. Plating waste samples came back above 1 million parts per trillion. The current federal health advisory limit for PFOA and PFOS is 4 parts per trillion. Hoodline
The tannery waste cell was capped with permeable sand and vegetation, a design that allowed PFAS to leach into soil and groundwater. Contaminated groundwater has migrated toward ponds and the Grand River. Hoodline
The driving range sits directly atop the tannery waste cell. Irrigation of that area was reduced in 2020 and stopped before the 2021 season in an effort to slow further leaching. Hoodline
What the State Ordered
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced an agreement with Northeast Gravel Company and Boulder Creek Development Corporation to address PFAS contamination at the Belmont property. WZZM 13
Under an Administrative Order on Consent signed in late April 2026, Boulder Creek Development Corp. must provide permanent alternative water supplies to properties identified by state investigators and reimburse EGLE roughly $100,000 for past response work. Hoodline
The order requires Boulder Creek to offer and install permanent hookups to affected properties and to properly plug private wells once connections are completed. Until hookups are in place, the company must provide bottled water and install point-of-use or point-of-entry filters where necessary. EGLE can enforce a cleanup schedule with stipulated penalties for missed deadlines. Hoodline
Boulder Creek agreed to the order but did not admit liability. Hoodline
Why This Matters
PFAS chemicals do not break down in the environment or in the human body. They accumulate over time. Exposure is linked to kidney and testicular cancer, thyroid disease, immune system damage, and developmental problems in children.
The families near Boulder Creek did not choose to live next to a PFAS landfill. The landfill was buried. A golf course was built on top of it. Homes were sold. Water wells were drilled. The state did not begin PFAS sampling at the site until 2017. By then, the contamination had been spreading for decades.
EGLE Director Phil Roos called the agreement “an important step toward ensuring residents have the clean, safe water they deserve.” WZZM 13
The bigger picture: this kind of site is not rare. Thousands of former industrial landfills exist across the United States. Many were capped and repurposed before PFAS was understood as a threat. If your home is near a former industrial site, former tannery, or military base, testing your well water for PFAS is a practical and important step.
You can request free PFAS testing in many states. Check your state environmental agency’s website for available programs.
Sources: MLive: https://www.mlive.com/environment/2026/05/water-hookups-ordered-near-golf-course-built-atop-pfas-waste.html Michigan EGLE site record: https://www.michigan.gov/pfasresponse/0,9038,7-365-86511_82704-500860–,00.html WZZM13: https://www.wzzm13.com/article/news/local/ag-nessel-secures-agreement-pfas-cleanup-belmont-community/69-de3f7392-4bfc-467a-8cce-a51e69492618 Insurance Journal: https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/midwest/2026/05/01/868074.htm WOODTV: https://www.woodtv.com/news/target-8/pfas-in-michigan/after-lawsuit-companies-agree-to-investigate-pfas-in-belmont/