Jonathan W. Bulkley papers, 1957-2015 (majority within 1978-2011)

Summary

Creator:

Bulkley, Jonathan W.

Abstract:

Jonathan W. Bulkley (1938-2019) was the University of Michigan's Professor Emeritus of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Peter M. Wege Endowed Professor Emeritus of Sustainable Systems in the School of Natural Resources and Environment (now the School for Environment and Sustainability). Bulkley's expertise in water resource management and water policy was sought in numerous lawsuits over the course of his career, most notably as special master (1978-1979) and monitor (1979-2009) in several cases regarding the failure of various Michigan organizations to comply with iterations of the 1972 Clean Water Act. He was also a member of the Ann Arbor, Mich. Housing Commission and served as its president in 1974-1976. This collection primarily documents Bulkley's legal and other professional activities and includes architectural drawings, clippings, correspondence, court proceedings and testimony, reports, legal documents, committee and meeting files, operating logs, notes, publications, and photographs. A small portion of records relates to Bulkley's work on the Ann Arbor Housing Commission. These records include records of meetings, policy statements, and staff materials documenting the work of the commission.

Extent:

87 linear feet
1 oversize folder
8 tubes
8.79 GB (online)
1 oversize box

Language:

English

Call Number:

8586 Aa 2 Ac

Authors:

Finding aid created by Michigan Historical Collections staff; Steven Gentry and Emily Mathay, February 2020.

Background

Scope and Content:

The Jonathan W. Bulkley papers primarily document Bulkley's involvement in several legal cases, including the 1977 lawsuit United States v. The City of Detroit (case number 77-71100) and the 1987 lawsuitU.S. v. Wayne County (case number 87-70992), both presided over by Judge John Feikens. These lawsuits concerned the failure of both the City of Detroit and Wayne County's wastewater treatment plants to adhere to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act and Clean Water Act. Judge Feikens was lauded for his handling of these cases, as he focused on negotiation and settlement, rather than unilateral judgement; the cases were resolved through complex consent judgements that were amended over time.

This collection also documents Bulkley's involvement in the Ann Arbor Housing Commission as well as various other academic and professional work he undertook throughout his career. Examples include his work in various smaller lawsuits, including one brought against the City of Toledo, Ohio by the U.S. (civil action number 3:91:CV7646), his involvement in the controversy over the removal of the Huron River's Argo Dam, and his work with the Michigan Environmental Science Board (MESB).

Materials in this collection include correspondence, maps, memos, reports, articles and clippings, notes, papers, court proceedings, testimony, and other legal materials, committee and meeting files, operating logs, course notes, architectural drawings, subject files, project plans, and photographs.

Researchers should note that due to the complex and intermingled nature of the various legal cases, some materials relating to the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department (DWSD) may be found in the Rouge River Watershed (RRW) series, and vice versa. When possible, materials have been kept in Bulkley's original groupings, and have been arranged in a rough chronological order.

Biographical / Historical:

Jonathan W. Bulkley (1938-2019) was the University of Michigan's Professor Emeritus of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Peter M. Wege Endowed Professor Emeritus of Sustainable Systems in the School of Natural Resources and Environment (now the School for Environment and Sustainability). While at U-M, he focused on water resource and environmental policy, and was an internationally renowned expert on combined sewer overflows, water collections systems, and watershed planning and management. Bulkley's research on and contributions to the management of natural resources remain key to the field.

Bulkley was born in Kansas City, Missouri on May 17, 1938. In 1956, he began an undergraduate dual degree program in civil engineering and political science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Four years into this five year program, Bulkley participated in Operation Crossroads Africa (a precursor to the Peace Corps), traveling to an area near the city of Kumase (Kumasi) in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. Bulkley's group of American and Canadian youth teamed up with a group of young Ghanaians to develop and install a water supply system for a rural training center. This experience sparked Bulkley's interest in the water field. Upon his return to the U.S. and the completion of his two SB degrees in 1961, he went on to earn an MS in civil engineering (1963) and a PhD in political science with a focus on water resource systems (1966), both from MIT.

After graduating in 1966, Bulkley served two years active duty in the United States Army Reserve, starting as a first lieutenant and achieving the rank of captain. He served both at the Pentagon with the Organization of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and as a systems analyst in the Office of the Special Assistant for Strategic Mobility (SASM), where he helped develop computer models for the deployment of armed forces overseas.

In September of 1968, Bulkley joined U-M as an assistant professor in the School of Natural Resources and Environment (SNRE) as well as the College of Engineering. He was promoted to associate professor in 1971 and full professor in 1977. From 2000 to his retirement in 2011, Bulkley held the Peter M. Wege Endowed Professorship in Sustainable Systems.

Bulkley's expertise was sought in a number of water-related lawsuits in Michigan and across the U.S.. The most notable case was his 1977 appointment by Judge John Feikens (United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan) as a special master (1978-1979), and later as a monitor (1979-1983), to help oversee the resolution of the lawsuit United States v. The City of Detroit (case number 77-71100). This case concerned the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department's non-compliance with the 1972 Clean Water Act. Bulkley's interdisciplinary experience with both politics and civil engineering helped him navigate the intricacies of this case. As a result of his efforts, the City of Detroit hired trained personnel, built appropriate facilities, and improved management practices. Bulkley's other legal activities included serving as a monitor in the case brought against the Wayne County Downriver Wastewater Treatment Plant regarding failure to comply with the Clean Water Act (case number 87-70992) and as an expert in a lawsuit regarding the Bayview Wastewater Treatment Plant's discharge of pollutants into the Maumee River (civil action No. 3:91:CV7646) in the City of Toledo, Ohio.

In addition to these efforts, Bulkley was instrumental in founding several different University of Michigan institutions, including the National Pollution Prevention Center (NPPC) for Higher Education; its successor, the Center for Sustainable Systems (CSS); and the Corporate Environmental Management Program. He served in leadership roles for each of these institutions, as director of the NPPC (1991-1999), co-director of CSS (1999-circa 2009) and co-director of the Corporate Environmental Management Program (2001-2004). Bulkley retired from U-M in 2011.

He chaired and served on a variety of boards, committees, and task forces, including the State of Michigan Environmental Science Board (1992-1995, chair 1994-1995); the State of Michigan's Mercury Pollution Prevention Task Force (1994-1996); the Universities Council on Water Resources (1995-1998); the Environmental Advisory Board, Chief of Engineers, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (1995-1999, chair 1998-1999); and the International Upper Great Lakes Study Board of the International Joint Commission for the Boundary Waters-United States and Canada (2007-2012). He was also a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, in which he held a variety of positions.

Bulkley received numerous awards and commendations during his tenure, including being named the inaugural Peter M. Wege Chair of Sustainable Systems (2000) and receiving the Commanders Award, Chief of Engineers, for his work as chair of the U.S. Corps of Engineers' Environmental Advisory Board (2002).

Bulkley was also active in the wider Ann Arbor community. He was first a member of the Ann Arbor Housing Commission (AAHC) from 1973 to 1976, and later president of the Commission from 1974 until 1976. Throughout his tenure as the Housing Commissioner, Bulkley oversaw the operation of an extremely troubled agency. Intense factionalism afflicted the commission's staff, and severe problems arose regarding several of the public housing sites administered by the body. He was also involved in a variety of other groups and committees, including the Allen Creek Greenway Conservancy, the City of Ann Arbor's Technical Oversight Advisory Group, and the Upper Great Lakes Study Board of the International Joint Commission.

Bulkley passed away on July 14, 2019.

Acquisition Information:

Donated by Jonathan W. Bulkley (donor no. 5969 ) in several accessions from 1977 to 2019.

Processing information:

In preparing digital material for long-term preservation and access, the Bentley Historical Library adheres to professional best practices and standards to ensure that content will retain its authenticity and integrity. For more information on procedures for the ingest and processing of digital materials, please see Bentley Historical Library Digital Processing Note. Access to digital material may be provided either as a direct link to an individual file or as a downloadable package of files bundled in a zip file.

Arrangement:

Arranged in 4 series: 1. Ann Arbor Housing Commission (AAHC) records. 2. Detroit Water and Sewerage Department (DWSD). 3. Rouge River Watershed (RRW). 4. Academic and Other Professional Work.

Accruals:

No further additions to the papers are expected.

Rules or Conventions:

Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS)

Subjects

Click on terms below to find any related finding aids on this site.

Subjects:

Environmental protection -- Michigan.
Housing -- Michigan.
Housing -- Michigan -- Ann Arbor.
Sewage -- Purification -- Michigan -- Detroit.
Water -- Pollution.
Water quality -- Michigan.

Formats:

Architectural drawings.
Digital file formats.
Photographs.
Video recordings.

Names:

Ann Arbor (Mich.). Housing Commission.
Detroit (Mich.). Water and Sewerage Department.
Michigan. Department of Environmental Quality.
Michigan. Department of Natural Resources.
Miller Manor (Ann Arbor, Mich.)
Southeast Michigan Council of Governments.
United States. District Court (Michigan : Eastern District)
United States. Environmental Protection Agency.
University of Michigan -- Faculty.
Bulkley, Jonathan W.
Feikens, John, 1917-2011.

Places:

Ann Arbor (Mich.) -- Dwellings.
Dwellings -- Michigan -- Ann Arbor.
Rouge, River (Mich. : River)