Michiganians are literally surrounded by water. Living in the Great Lakes state means added tourism to recreational waterways and access to freshwater resources the rest of the world can only envy.

But if we want these resources to stay clean, Michigan residents and legislators need to take action - and that's exactly what they did this past week.

In honor of Earth Day, Gov. Jennifer Granholm signed two bills Thursday that charge fees to industrial and toxic-waste polluters of Michigan's rivers, lakes and groundwater.

The revenue gained will be used to help with the enforcement of the new laws.

On campus, student volunteers also decided to take action earlier last week by cleaning up the famed Red Cedar River. They picked up litter in an all-day event that happens twice per year. The group found a myriad of items, such as clothes, couch cushions and cabinets.

These actions will contribute positively to Michigan residents' health and will keep swimming, water-skiing and fishing sanitary. No one would be interested in visiting the Great Lakes if every lake's conditions mirrored Lake Erie's past. The lake caught fire in the 1960s and was declared "dead" in the early 1970s - not exactly the nicest spot for an afternoon dip.

MSU's own waterway, the Red Cedar River, constantly is played up in orientation as a hangout spot for college kids, but again, who wants to swim or canoe in a river filled with old couches and dirty underwear?

Besides feeding the ducks behind Wells Hall, it hardly is a place of recreational activities; people have treated it as more of a dump site than a hangout.

If Michiganians aren't careful, they might be surrounded by oil-infested swamps instead of beautiful lakes.

The bills approved by Granholm and the cleanup on campus are two positive ways the community can keep that from happening.