Wisconsin Clean Water Activist Endorses Dem Nominee, Tony Evers, for Governor

Madison, Wisconsin — Heavy field, analytical and organizing efforts in central Wisconsin continue as residents and communities work to protect surface and groundwater from pollution.

An important activist, Don Ystad of Rome, just endorsed Tony Evers (D) for governor.

This morning's endorsement sent by email is reproduced below.

By Don Ystad

Desperate times call for desperate measures. Our lakes are in trouble with ever increasing blue-green algae incidents, e coli readings above the safe swimming level, and Adams County tourism down 5% this past year while the rest of the state increased 3.2%. We need to level the playing field in Madison. While we've tried to remain non-political in the past, our water quality continues to degrade. Please consider the following before you vote in November.

Fellow Concerned Citizens,

I was visiting a friend at the Wauwatosa campaign office and Tony Evers stopped in to say hello to the staff. When he asked if anyone had questions, I asked what he would do to fix the water quality issues in the central sands area where I live. He began by talking about the many water issues all over Wisconsin, including Kewaunee and frac sand mining in the western part of the state. I was encouraged that he had a really good grasp of the water quality issues all around Wisconsin. He indicated that he would make the following changes to protect our water:

• First, he would appoint an independent head to the DNR to level the playing field
• next, he would bring back the DNR scientists to re-establish a fact based approach to resource management
• also, he would return the Natural Resources Board as an independent, non-political advisory group, with the power to affect our direction regarding our resources.
• And, Tony said he would work to establish a balance between agriculture and recreational needs, understanding that tourism and agriculture can co-exist

Polluted Wisconsin lake in central Wisconsin

I was impressed with his grasp of environmental issues, and the fact that he would look for a balance between our recreational lakes and our agricultural needs.

As I was explaining this to co-members of our Concerned Citizens core team, PACRS (Petenwell and Castle Rock Stewards) founder Rick Georgeson mentioned he worked in the school system with Tony Evers in Tomah and knows him very well. 

Rick says, “Tony is a real common-sense person, he works very well with other people, has solid principles, and is a great listener and team builder. He was well respected by the community.”  And, he added, “Tony will make a fine Governor.” This means a lot coming from the leader and founder of the PACRS organization.

I plan to vote for Tony and hope you will as well. Our lakes are showing the “business first” challenges of the current administration and we need to level the playing field. For those who might be offended by this recommendation of a change in our state government, I would ask you to think about the condition of our lakes and streams in our area, and consider the efforts of your neighbors, TriLakes and our Rome Town Board, who are trying to clean up our 14-Mile Creek Watershed. We can't do it without the support of our state government. It's time for a change.
#

Adams County Wisconsin Fights for Safe Water Amid Gov. Race and Republican Attack on Local Control

Entire regions of Wisconsin face disaster
from polluters and Republicans.

'88% of our county water recreational property is on the state's impaired list'

Madison, Wisconsin — One of the damages inflicted on Wisconsin by Gov. Scott Walker (R) is the malicious attacks on local control for the benefit of Republican donors.

If Walker and Republicans can chase out multi-generational families, disembowel local democracy, then the remaining residents as a whole will be more pliable, better victims

Below is an email from Don Ystad working on protecting Adams County in central Wisconsin by establishing and codifying local bodies of citizens as they face assaults from Republican state government and Republican-supported polluters.

Ystad and other residents held a public Oct. 16 citizens' meeting with the Adams County Board.

Ystad, and neighbors have been deep into this kind of community work for years now. 

Below is an email sent by Ystad on the outcome of the latest meeting, replete with facts and recommendations to safeguard the county from polluters and increase local democracy.

---

Chairman West,

Thank you very much for the opportunity to share our concerns and suggestions for steps that would help improve our declining recreational water quality and our loss of tourism revenue in our county.

The 5% loss in county tourism revenue alone last year equals nearly $17 million. Add the lost opportunity cost of the statewide 3.2% gain and the potential for increased water recreational property value, and I think all would agree that there is a sizable upside to taking steps immediately to improving these impaired waterways. 

As mentioned, 88% of our county water recreational property is on the state's impaired list. Action is needed to reverse these declines. I hope you or Casey can forward to other county board members and applicable committee members. I will forward to the citizen groups to which I have access.

Following are the suggestions discussed last night. I've included those I brought up, as well as those from attendees:

1) Encourage increased involvement of Land and Water Conservation Department (LWCD) and other departments with citizen lake groups. An example is the nine key element plan which was started as a citizen involved participation project, but was redirected with the change in the the LWCD. Another example is the minimal communication of lake issues at the LWCD committee meetings. We can do better than that.

2) Hire a part-time or contract grant specialist to assist LWCD and lake groups to obtain funds for improvement projects. We lost grant funding last year.

3) Hire a a part-time lakes expert to provide guidance to our young LWCD department, and to help spearhead lake improvement efforts like the nine key element plan and improvement projects for our other impaired waterways.

4) Enforce setbacks for all county waterways and expedite the rewrite of the shoreland protection ordinance. Determine if we can enforce the 35' buffer now, in spite of the state changes a few years ago. See Bar Association of Wisconsin.

5) Organize the county-wide septic system database. Improve inspection, reporting and condemnation process.

6)Strengthen and support the county lake alliance. Establish a stronger connection to the LWCD committee and others, including the county board. Help create a link between lakes dwellers and agriculture, and support water improvement projects in common.

7 Involve citizens in a county forest program

8) Consider a task force for CAFO regulation in the county

9) Consider a task force for high capacity well regulation in the county

10) LWCD and other build relationships with neighboring counties that share our watersheds. Promote producer led watershed councils, and facilitate interaction with other counties and with lake and agriculture groups within them.

And, perhaps even more importantly, place each of these suggestions on the county board agenda or agenda of related committees so that concerned citizens can be aware of progress.

For the citizens in attendance at the meeting, and those copied through the e-mail train, communication goes both ways. We need to be a part of this by inserting ourselves in the county government process. That means attending meetings, volunteering, and being an active part of the efforts to repair our county water bodies.

Respectfully,

Don Ystad