 In 2011, Governor Rick Snyder's first-ever executive order, Executive Order 2011-1, split the DNRE, returning DNR and DEQ into separate agencies, which Snyder said would allow each to focus on its core mission.Under a state law enacted in October 2011, the Michigan Geological Survey was transferred from the Michigan DEQ to the Western Michigan University (WMU) Department of Geosciences, making WMU "the designated geoscience agency in Michigan, with responsibility for mapping and assessing the state's geological resources.