Wayne County holds powerful tools that shape the air we breathe and the health of Detroit’s neighborhoods — especially around trucking, roads, and public health. These are not state or federal responsibilities. They are county powers, and they can be used now.

1. Control Over Roads and Trucks

  • The Wayne County Department of Public Services owns and maintains hundreds of miles of county roads — including many of the industrial corridors that carry diesel trucks through Detroit’s east and southwest sides.
  • The County can:
    • Designate truck routes and restrict others, keeping heavy diesel traffic off residential streets.
    • Limit hours of operation for industrial trucking and maintenance on county roads.
    • Require permits for oversize and overweight vehicles and attach conditions — such as emission standards or routing requirements.
    • Coordinate with Detroit to create no-truck or low-emission zones near schools, parks, and dense neighborhoods.

These are regulatory powers, not suggestions. The County already uses them for weight and safety — it can apply them for health and air quality as well.

2. County Public Health Powers

  • The Wayne County Health, Human & Veterans Services Department has authority under Michigan’s Public Health Code to protect residents from environmental health hazards — including air pollution and fumes.
  • The Health Department can:
    • Conduct inspections and health risk assessments when pollution complaints arise.
    • Issue public health advisories, warnings, or cease-and-desist orders if operations pose danger to nearby residents.
    • Work with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services to carry out asthma and exposure studies in high-impact zip codes.
    • Coordinate with hospitals and local health departments to track respiratory illness data and identify pollution-related spikes.

When odors, fumes, or dust become chronic, the County doesn’t have to wait for EGLE or the EPA — it can act directly to protect health.

3. Regional Planning and Infrastructure

  • Through SEMCOG and regional transportation boards, Wayne County votes on road design, industrial access, and federal funding for infrastructure projects.
  • The County can prioritize green infrastructure, buffers, and truck route redesigns that reduce diesel exposure in environmental justice communities.
  • It can direct ARPA, climate, and infrastructure funds toward fence-line air monitoring, traffic rerouting, and road improvements that cut particulate pollution.

4. Legal and Policy Authority

  • The County Commission can introduce ordinances or resolutions addressing truck idling, road use, and pollution mitigation.
  • The County’s Corporation Counsel can pursue public nuisance or negligence actions against companies whose emissions create chronic health impacts.
  • The County is also covered by the Michigan Environmental Protection Act (MEPA), which means residents or organizations can sue the County itself if its inaction allows ongoing pollution that harms natural resources or public health.

What Residents Can Demand

  1. A County Truck and Air Quality Ordinance that limits truck idling, restricts routes, and funds fence-line monitoring.
  2. A Public Health Response Plan for industrial odors and air releases, with automatic notification to nearby residents.
  3. A joint City–County enforcement agreement to ensure coordination on trucking, permitting, and pollution control.
  4. Regular County Commission hearings on environmental health in Detroit’s overburdened districts.
  5. Transparent data sharing on truck permits, air monitoring, and complaint investigations.

Framing It Publicly

“Wayne County controls the roads that carry diesel through our neighborhoods and the public health department that’s supposed to protect us. Those are powerful tools against pollution. The County can restrict trucks, investigate odors, and act when air quality threatens our health. If they choose not to use that power, it’s not because they can’t — it’s because they won’t.”