Since the end of WWII, the United States has built the largest military power on the globe. Military spending enjoys widespread support from Democrats and Republicans. With the attack on the World Trade Center and the following decades of war, military spending has accelerated. A state of permanent war mentality grips much of the country. Today we spend more on the military than China, India, Russia, United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, Germany, France, Japan, and South Korea — combined. The United States has also historically devoted a larger share of its economy to defense than many of its key allies.

Few people are willing to challenge what seems an unending commitment to the expansions of the materials of war. Until now. People in northern Michigan are objecting to the proposed expansion of a military base in Grayling. They are asking for our help in providing comments to the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) against the proposed expansion of Camp Grayling by roughly 162,000 acres of public land. This would more than double the size of the current footprint of 148,000 acres.

Camp Grayling is the largest National Guard training facility in the US.  It includes thousands of acres of forested lands and is linked to major watersheds. It also “offers an urban environment that simulates small towns in Michigan. “[Grayling has] roundabouts and paved streets and underground tunneling with sewer systems and multi-floor complex buildings. All of those things provide an environment that’s extremely useful when we talk about mobility or ground mobility,” says Col. Scott Meyers, the commander at Camp Grayling

The National Guard has given no reason for the proposed expansion. They are ensuring people in the communities that there are no plans for live fire, road building, or alterations in the landscape. The guard says the space would be used for “low impact training exercises” like drones or camouflage practice. In response to initial public outcry, the Guard proposed a buffer zone of a mere 1,500 feet around especially vulnerable water sources like the Au Sable and Manistee rivers. They also pledge to not use the firefighting foam linked to PFAS which is already polluting the land and waters. Testing of neighboring drinking water is a constant practice to protect people.

Many residents question these pledges. Tim Minotas of the Sierra Club noted,”Military bases have an alarming history of contaminating our land and water. This expansion would nearly double the size of Camp Grayling and put numerous communities, ecosystems, and species at risk. Our watersheds must be protected — we cannot afford to pollute any more of our wetlands, rivers, or lakes.”

Behind this expansion is the desire of government, military, and business interests to turn Michigan into a testing ground for the development of more weapons and techniques dedicated to war and destruction. Recently the National Guard announced a new effort to create military and business partnerships using Camp Grayling and related areas as testing grounds. Army Maj. Gen. Paul Rogers, adjutant general and director of the Michigan Department of Military and Veteran Affairs. “Michigan’s military training areas provide unique opportunities for defense industry innovators to generate and test ideas that solve mutually complex problems.”

Taking public land so that businesses can make more money making more weapons is a bad idea. This will only intensify the risk of death and pollution to all of us. It is not a path to a sustainable future. Take a moment and send your thoughts to the DNR. Encourage them to reject this give away of public land. You can submit comments online at an interactive map of the proposed expansion area or e-mail DNR Director Dan Eichinger at: DNR-Camp-Grayling@Michigan.gov.