Property owners along the Great Lakes shoreline are being asked to remove their sandbags.

The bags have been in place since 2020 along many properties to protect them erosion. Now, the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy are asking that they be removed.

WSJM reports that about 450 temporary permits were issued statewide to protect homes, docks and other structures from heavy erosion. Now that lake levels have gone back down — except at Lake Superior — letters are being sent to property owners to remove the sandbags, because they can break down over time and release microplastics into the lake ecosystems.