Wisconsin’s largest business lobbying group accuses Laketown officials of overstepping in passing an ordinance to limit pollution from concentrated animal feeding operations.
Tag: manure
Posted inEnvironment, Failure at the Faucet, Health & Welfare
Cow manure predicted to cause most sickness from contaminated wells in Kewaunee County
A new study predicts the incidence of gastrointestinal illness in private drinking wells, identifying manure as the main cause of contamination.
Posted inEnvironment, Failure at the Faucet
Wisconsin Supreme Court weighs state power to protect water from farm pollutants
The outcome of a nearly decade-long dispute in Kewaunee County could shape regulatory power across state government.
Posted inFailure at the Faucet, Health & Welfare
Most nitrate, coliform in Kewaunee County wells tied to animal waste
The latest findings from a study of drinking water wells and their surroundings finds manure from cows that is stored or spread on farm fields poses the highest risk for certain contaminants.
Posted inFailure at the Faucet
Fecal microbes found in 60 percent of sampled wells, raising concerns about dairy manure, septic waste
Tests show waste from Kewaunee County’s 97,000 head of cattle contaminates majority of wells, especially after rainfall or snowmelt; human waste also a factor.
Posted inEnvironment, Failure at the Faucet, Money & Politics
Water woes emerge as major issue in Wisconsin elections
Residents concerned about contaminated wells and disappearing lakes are making water a major campaign issue for some Wisconsin candidates this fall.
Posted inEnvironment, Failure at the Faucet, Health & Welfare
Human waste pollutes some Wisconsin drinking water
Failing septic systems, leaking public sewer pipes and landspreading of septic waste can introduce dangerous pathogens into both rural and urban water systems. Experts say Wisconsin needs tougher laws to protect Wisconsin drinking water from contamination by sewage and septic waste.
Posted inEnvironment, Failure at the Faucet, Health & Welfare
Bacteria in state’s drinking water is ‘public health crisis’
Hundreds of thousands of Wisconsin residents are at risk of illness from waterborne pathogens in private and public drinking water supplies. Contamination by pathogens is of special concern because unlike pollution by metals or chemicals, pathogens can sicken people after just a single exposure.
Posted inWisWatch Blog
For sale: Half a cow, one trout, one faucet and 1,000 wool balls
They’ve traveled 1,000 miles across Wisconsin, drawing attention to important issues affecting the quality and supply of our state’s water. Now, four sculptures crafted by artist Carrie Roy are headed for the next stage in their adventure: They’re for sale.
Posted inEnvironment, Failure at the Faucet, Government, Health & Welfare, Water Watch Wisconsin
Nitrate in water widespread, current rules no match for it
Levels of nitrate, one of the Wisconsin’s top drinking water contaminants, are increasing. Nitrate comes primarily from fertilizers, including manure, and puts infants and expectant mothers particularly at risk. A projected 94,000 households are drinking private well water with unsafe levels of nitrate. And many of them don’t even know it since few private well owners conduct regular testing.
Posted inEnvironment, Failure at the Faucet, Government, Health & Welfare
Safe, clean drinking water eludes many Wisconsinites
Hundreds of thousands of Wisconsin’s 5.8 million residents are at risk of consuming drinking water tainted with substances including lead, nitrate, disease-causing bacteria and viruses, naturally occurring heavy metals and other contaminants, the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism has found.
Posted inEnvironment, Government, Health & Welfare, Water Watch Wisconsin
Farmers vow to reduce phosphorus, bane of Green Bay
Despite fish kills, toxic algae blooms, unsafe beaches and an annual dead zone in the Lake Michigan bay sparking concern across the region, the level of phosphorus loading has changed little over the past two decades, and even gone up in the past couple of years. “I’m part of the problem,” said John Pagel of Pagel’s Ponderosa Dairy, one of the largest farms in Wisconsin, at a summit hosted by U.S. Rep. Reid Ribble in Green Bay. “But I’m also part of the solution.”