Urgent! Ask your legislators to cosponsor the Groundwater Protection Bill!

Over the past several months we have been telling you about upcoming legislation to protect our groundwater supplies and groundwater-dependent rivers, lakes and wetlands.  At long last, the groundwater bill is here!  Your voice is critical to show strong support for the bill.  Call or email your legislators TODAY and ask that they add their name as a cosponsor of the groundwater bill, LRB 4094/1.  A long list of legislative cosponsors will show strong early support for the bill, which helps leaders identify it as a priority.

The great news is that the legislation does reflect the priorities we have been fighting to include in this bill:

1. Creates “groundwater management areas” so local governments and the Department of Natural Resources can ensure that groundwater is used more carefully, thereby avoiding drying up groundwater supplies, lakes, streams and wetlands;

2. Creates a process for the scientific review of new wells so sensitive natural resources are not harmed; and

3. Brings conservation into water planning so that new groundwater withdrawals are used efficiently.

A strong show of early support is especially crucial for the success of this bill since the legislative session ends in April, and there is still a lot of work to be done.  If legislative leaders see the bill is a priority because of its long list of cosponsors, they will accommodate these short timeframes. And stay tuned – hearings should be announced soon, and your voice will be needed then too!

Call, write or email your legislators before this Thursday, March 11, and ask them to cosponsor LRB 4094/1, being circulated by Senator Mark Miller and Representative Spencer Black.  For contact information for your legislators, click here. We’ve attached a draft message for your convenience here, but feel free to personalize this message and let them know why Wisconsin’s groundwater resources are important to YOU!

River Waves….Air Waves, that is….

On February 23rd, our very own Denny Caneff and long time River Alliance member Chuck Wagner discussed drinking water issues in the “karst” region of northeast Wisconsin with Stacy Harbaugh on "A Public Affair", 89.9 WORT-FM. Click here to listen.

Keeping an Eye on Big Dairy

While big livestock farms (known as CAFOs, or Confined Animal Feeding Operations) continue to expand (with support from top state government officials), their impact on rivers, lakes, and groundwater has citizens all across Wisconsin worried.

The Michigan Chapter of the Sierra Club is hosting a series of "webinars" designed to answer questions related to water quality monitoring CAFOs for their impacts on nearby water resources. The first of the three-part series happened Tuesday evening, February 9. The second and third installment are set for February 16 and 23.

If you cannot participate in the webinars, the Sierra Club has posted written materials and contact information for the program on their website. This is a great source of information on how to monitor CAFOs. Click here to learn more.