An 89-year-old Traverse City man has admitted to abandoning a barge in Lake Michigan, leading to pollution charges, as per Michigan officials. Donald Lewis Balcom, the owner of Balcom Marine Contractors, entered a guilty plea for discharging harmful substances into the state's waters, a violation under the state Natural Resources and Protection Act of 1994. This plea agreement could give Balcom a chance to dodge a harsher sentence, as reported by The Detroit News.

According to the plea deal, while Balcom faces up to two years in prison, his sentencing is on hold for a year allowing him time to remove the industrial barge, after that if he succeeds in relocating the barge to an approved site, the felony may be reduced to a misdemeanor, Attorney General Dana Nessel has emphasized that irrespective of the barge’s removal, Balcom must reimburse the state for any costs incurred from this ordeal as detailed by Michigan Department of Attorney General's announcement.

The saga began when the barge initially sank near Greilickville in Leelanau County back in 2020, polluting Lake Michigan with oil, after being ordered to move the barge by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy and the U.S. Coast Guard, Balcom had it towed yet it settled onto bottomlands once more, close to Northport's residential docks, leading to another abandonment charge per allegations. Without a resolution from Balcom to correct the matter, state intervention may be inevitable, Nessel added in her comments on the ongoing environmental snag.

Nessel, expressing contentment on the conviction, stated, “I relaunched the environmental crimes unit in my office to prosecute egregious offenses against our State’s natural resources, and I am pleased to announce this conviction,” yet she also froze a silhouette of anticipation declaring “But this matter is not yet resolved. The barge must be moved to a legal location, otherwise Mr. Balcom will face sentencing on the felonious release of oil from the sunken vessel into state waters of Lake Michigan. We have made it abundantly clear he cannot treat the bay as his own personal junkyard, and if he does not resolve the issue, the State will. My department remains committed to resolving this years-long issue and to protecting the Great Lakes whenever they come under threat", stated in the press release by her office. Balcom's legal counsel could not be reached for immediate commentary on the situation.