"LANSING, MI — A commercially valuable but unpronounceable toxicant with multiple chemical variations is being increasingly found at harmful levels in Michigan waters.

Sound familiar? It’s not PFAS or PCBs this time. Now, it’s neonicotinoids, or “neonics” — a type of synthetic pesticide that’s widely used on corn and soybeans.

Neonic variations with tongue-twister names like “imidacloprid,” “clothianidin” and “thiamethoxam” are showing up in creeks and rivers at alarming levels, prompting the development of impairment designations and warnings from environmental groups about a growing threat to aquatic life.

In the past few years, the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) has found high concentrations in creeks and rivers that drain to the Great Lakes in St. Clair County, Saginaw County, Ottawa County and Huron County."

Garret Ellison reports for MLive August 17, 2025. [2]