Wisconsin Clean Water Advocates Are in Fighting Mood

'Why do we, as a democratic society, allow the rich and powerful to trample over the rights and health of the average rural citizen!'

Updated - Commenting on children drinking manure-laden water caused by factory farms, Janet McConaughey of Ixonia, Wisconsin, (Jefferson County), said:

"What I'm concerned about is (5-year-old grandson) Jordan's world. So, I want to know that when he's grown up, he'll have a decent place to live. He'll have clean air, clean water," (Bowden, Wisconsin Public Radio).

Ms. McConaughey is not alone as Gov. Scott Walker has ceded rural Wisconsin as a colony to Big Ag, without regard to the consequences to families and communities.

Walker's brazen give-away of private homes and public communities is a major political fight that is bearing electoral fruit.

But a major battle is the Wisconsin courts.

In central Wisconsin, 10,000s of residents are waiting to hear what the Wisconsin Supreme Court will decide to do with their communities and homes in Golden Sands Dairy LLC v. Town of Saratoga case, awaiting opinion and decision.

Golden Sands is a name of a proposed factory farm of the infamous Wysocki corporation.

The stakes are high.

1. The Court can eliminate the democratic capacity of families to protect local conditions, property values, drinking water, health, and local character.

2. The Court can decide to impose onto Wisconsin a radical, new conception of corporate vested property rights.
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Clean water advocates have built a movement in Wisconsin.
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On April 3, Big Ag's candidate for the Wisconsin Supreme Court, Michael Screnock, Scott Walker's candidate, was decisively defeated by Rebecca Dallet who campaigned in part on protecting clean water as a value.

Consider the unofficial results from four central-Wisconsin counties, much of which would be devastated by an adverse Court decision in Golden Sands Dairy LLC v. Town of Saratoga case.

Next to each county below is the Trump victory margin in 2016, and the Democratic swing.

Adams County: (Won by Trump 58 to 36 percent)

Rebecca Dallet       - 1892 votes (49 percent)
Michael Screnock  - 1912 votes (50 percent)
—Democratic swing of 21 points

Wood County (Won by Trump 56 to 37)

Rebecca Dallet       - 6471 votes (52 percent)
Michael Screnock  - 5933 votes (47 percent)
—Democratic swing of 24 points

Juneau County (Won by Trump 60 to 34)

Rebecca Dallet       -  2157 votes (45 percent)
Michael Screnock  -  2600 votes (54 percent)
—Democratic swing of 17 points

Portage County (Lost by Trump 44 to 49)

Rebecca Dallet       - 7455 votes (62 percent)
Michael Screnock  - 4435 votes (37 percent)
—Democratic swing of 20 points

[Trump figures are rounded. Dallet-Screnock figures omit scattering votes.]

Conclusion: The Blue Wave is building in Wisconsin, and clean and safe water advocates are energizing the momentum.
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The Wysocki corporation has a factory farm in Juneau county, and it is polluting families unfortunate to live near the shit-emitting monstrosity, the Central Sands Dairy, LLC.

Central Sands is applying for a Wisconsin Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (WPDES) permit.

An update from central Wisconsin residents, Bruce Dimick and Doreen Dimick follows:

Hello all,

On March 22, 2018 there was a WPDES public renewal hearing for the Wysocki CAFO, Central Sands Dairy, in Armenia, Juneau County. This public hearing was conducted by the DNR as are all these public hearings. Wysocki has been in frequent violation of his current WPDES permit, but that appears to be of no great concern to the DNR.

I did not have any great expectations about how this hearing would go, but I was greatly encouraged by the outcome.  First of all at least 9 citizens from Saratoga showed up and 5 of those citizens spoke in opposition to renewal of Wysocki's WPDES permit. But what was the biggest surprise was that at least 50 people showed up for the hearing and an additional 13 people, all from Armenia and the surrounding area spoke up against.  No one spoke in favor of granting Wysocki a renewal.  The people from Armenia spoke from the heart. They had had their wells contaminated, their property devalued, and their way of life degraded.

Sheri Red Fox, who can't use her water for much of anything, spoke of having to distill enough water just to brush her teeth and have enough to drink and cook with.  She lives quite close to the CAFO.  A former employee of Wysocki spoke of how he had been ordered to spread manure on frozen ground and on snow covered fields, all of which is illegal.  When he complained he was fired by Wysocki's managers and threatened if he ever told anyone about what was going on.  One member of the Armenia Town Board spoke up on how the contaminated water was adversely affecting his constituents.

Many people from Armenia thanked those of us from Saratoga for standing with them.

I could not identify anyone from the Wysocki organization being at the hearing, but I am sure they had at least one plant to report back to "Jimmy".

No one is under any illusion that the DNR will not renew the WPDES permit, but the testimony given is now a matter of public record and could be used in court proceedings in the future.
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WPDES PERMIT HEARING FOR CENTRAL SANDS DAIRY – MARCH 22, 2018

Geologically speaking, the Central Sands area was a large lake called Glacial Lake Wisconsin formed after the last ice age.  There was a large ice dam in the Wisconsin Dells area that allowed the lake to persist for 5 or 10,000 years. During those years, the lake filled up with sand from the Wisconsin River and its tributaries. Once the ice dam gave way, the lake drained and our current environment was slowly established. We might envision that we are living over a huge washtub of sand filled with water. The sand is quite porous, so this washtub is continually replenished with rainwater and snowmelt. There is no real distinction between surface water and ground water in this porous environment.

 Most of us who live in the Central Sands in rural areas have our own private wells, whether they be drilled wells or sandpoints.  For the most part we are all drinking from the same aquifer.  This aquifer is both plentiful and vulnerable to pollution due to the porosity of the sandy soil. It is incumbent on all of us that live here and use this aquifer to protect it for the good of all. 

Excessive nitrates are a particular pollutant that easily are dissolved in rainwater and flow down into the aquifer. The EPA limit for dissolved nitrates in drinking water is 10 ppm for municipal water supplies for health reasons. Colorectal cancer, blue baby syndrome, and other deadly ailments are among the diseases linked to nitrates in drinking water.

The Central Sands Dairy has a total of 9 monitoring wells strategically placed around the CAFO.  Many of these monitoring wells have consistently exceeded the EPA limit of 10 ppm by wide margins.  The worst reading that I have seen recorded was 88 ppm for CSD 7S in October 2017.  Think of that – almost 9 times the EPA limit!

So all this contaminated water flows in a predominately southeasterly direction on its way to the now highly contaminated Lake Petenwell. Along the way it contaminates the water supplies of the rural residents in its path.

All of us siting here today know that the DNR will renew the WPDES permit for the Central Sands Dairy. The question is why do we, as a democratic society, allow the rich and powerful to trample over the rights and health of the average rural citizen!
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WPDES PERMIT HEARING FOR CENTRAL SANDS DAIRY,
Mar. 22, 2018

The hearing today centers on the DNR’s decision whether or not to give the Central Sands Dairy a permit to continue operations for the next five years and under what conditions it may operate. One would think that this permit would be based on what effect the dairy has and has had on the groundwater in the area of and around the dairy. 

The EPA standard for maximum nitrogen in the groundwater is 10 ppm, yet almost all the monitoring wells in and around Central Sands Dairy show levels well above that standard. So it is very concerning that it seems that there have been  no real efforts to enforce that standard. There is no way that the houses around the CSD have drinkable well water and must choose expensive bottled water and/or a reverse osmosis system.  Indeed one would wonder where the dairy is accessing the water that is given to the cows that produce the milk. 

Municipal water supplies must stay within the 10 ppm limit. Restaurants or other service businesses that rely on water must stay within that limit. Central Sands Dairy is not even close. I would urge the DNR to deny the permit under present business practices and enforce some meaningful limits.

Doreen Dimick
Wisconsin Rapids, WI

Central Wisconsin Calls for Water Testing

Madison, Wisconsin — The northern United States is enjoying the long, hot Summer as the dog days of August approach.

In central Wisconsin, the call is for water testing as Big Ag threatens the state with 15,000 lakes.

From the Protect Wood County (Wisconsin) and Its Neighbors organization comes a mass local project in which 100s of households have tested their groundwater to establish an empirical baseline of dangerous nitrates, phosphorus and pathogens, should a proposed massive factory farm and other Big Ag operations so befoul drinking water that that emergency legal action comes necessary.
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From Protect Wood County (Wisconsin) and Its Neighbors

Friends and Neighbors,

I am not sure I will have internet connection strong enough here in the deep woods for this message to send but am crossing my fingers!

1st - Wanted to give everyone a last final reminder the Saratoga Water Testing will conclude this weekend.  If you have not already registered or called-in to reserve your spot please do so ASAP.  There will be limited walk-in slots available if you do not register for a spot in advance there is no guarantee a bottle will be available for you.

Online link for registration and online payment:

Alternatively reservations can be made through Bruce Dimick @ 715-325-1990

2nd – Please remember to mark your calendars for Tuesday August 8th if interested in hearing from one of the many candidates running for Wisconsin Governor in 2018.  Citizens’ Water Coalition is sponsoring a Potluck Meet & Greet with Mike McCabe at the Nepco Lake Pavilion.  Doors open at 5:30 with event potluck starting at 6pm.  This event is free to the public and for informational purposes, this NOT a campaign fundraising event.  For more information please visit their event page.

3rd – For those who registered for the Farm to Table event we wish you safe travels to the Metoyer/Brown farm.  You will surly enjoy a wonderful evening with like-minded individuals.  I am not sure if registration for this event is still open but if interested please feel free to access their website and check it out.  Dinner in the Field

Our mailing address is:
Protect Wood County & Its Neighbors
PO Box 1532
Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54495

Central Wisconsin Rep. Krug Stiffs Clean Water Group, Is No-Show with No Call

Clean water activists in Saratoga, Wisconsin fight for water
and oppose the siting of a proposed factory farm

Faced with preserving a way of life against economic and environmental devastation, a growing citizens' movement held a meeting this week to preserve and protect groundwater in central Wisconsin.

The featured speaker was State Rep. Scott Krug, (R-Nekoosa, Wisconsin). Krug did not show up at the meeting; Krug did not call.

Why would a sitting state representative treat his own constituents with such open contempt?

Krug runs political interference for the polluters and plunderers of Wisconsin waters. Krug often skips scheduled meetings.

Krug is also a champion for the proposed massive Wysocki factory farm in central Wisconsin that would devastate an entire region and imperil the new Sand Valley Golf Resort, some four miles south of the proposed industrial site.

From a May 23, 2017 email from factory farm fighter, Bruce Dimick of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin:

Hello All,

Bill Leichtnam, (Wood County, (Wisconsin), Supervisor, (Saratoga, Wisconsin)) and I attended today's meeting of the South-East Wood County Groundwater Group at the Saratoga Town Hall. This group of concerned citizens is meeting monthly to grapple with the groundwater issues of Wood County and surrounding communities in the Central Sands. The group is sanctioned by the Wood County Board and is chaired by Peter Manley.  

It includes farmers and Tamas Houlihan, of the WPVGA, (Wisconsin Potato and Vegetable Growers Association), among others, so it is a diverse group.  If we are going to solve these water issues, we need to get all the stakeholders involved.

Frequently we have an expert speaker as the focal point for the meeting.  Representative Scott Krug was scheduled to be our featured speaker today. The topic was "Recent Groundwater Legislation".   As many of you know Rep. Krug was a key driving force behind the recent passage of Senate Bill 76/ Assembly Bill 105 which removes further restrictions on High Capacity Wells. Protect Wood County and Its Neighbors took a strong stand against this bill as did most of the pro-environment groups throughout the state.

So, we were quite anxious to hear what Rep. Krug had to say in defense of this legislation which many of his constituents opposed.

Surprise! Surprise! Rep. Krug did not show up and did not bother to call Peter Manley to say he was not coming.

Actually I don't think anyone in the room was surprised that Rep. Krug did not show up. He has a reputation for stiffing his constituents.

Bruce Dimick
[links added, per author]

CAFO Fighters Preparing for War in Wisconsin During Aug Dog Days

August is no time to begin a campaign or a marketing project, says cliched wisdom.

Actually, it is time, and clean water activists are working overtime to define two Wisconsin state assembly races in time for Labor Day.

From Protect Wood County and Its Neighbors this morning:

Protect Wood County and Its Neighbors is also a solid
supporter of the "Its Your Water Wisconsin" campaign
being promoted by the River Alliance, Wisconsin Lakes Group,
and The Central Sands Water Action Coalition.  

If you believe in the value of our water and need to protect it,
support this simple and specific Declaration of Principles
for Wisconsin's Water which can be found on the
Its Your Water Wisconsin  webpage.

Once Legislators come back into session a document 
will be shared with them showing the massive number of
supporters from across the state who are advocating for our
Wisconsin Waters.  Let your voice be heard - sign on today!

Its Your Water Wisconsin - Sign-on Form

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

It is election season. As irritating as this can be, it will be followed immediately by a legislative session which is sure to see a tremendous amount of water bills presented right out out the gate. We need to start preparing NOW for the actions needed come January.

Building a statewide network of like minded individuals is essential as there will be state budget and legislative issues we will be forced to address. Having a united voice of thousands statewide is a much stronger force than a few hundred from our local area.

Listed [at right] are two different ways we can be unifying our voice across the state to advocate for clean air and water.  Please consider signing onto each campaign and registering your voice for protections of our Natural Resources.

JUST A REMINDER!

Tonight - Monday August 22nd at 6:30PM is our Monthly Update Meeting.  Hope to see you there!
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Sustain Rural Wisconsin Network Coalition

Protect Wood County & Its Neighbors has partnered with SRWN, [Sustain Rural Wisconsin Network Coalition], in creating a statewide coalition of individuals and organizations dedicated to protecting the economic, social, and cultural vitality of rural communities as well as the land, air, and water we depend on for happy healthy lives. 

Sustain Rural Wisconsin Network Coalition, (SRWN), is looking for both citizen individuals and community groups to join our network to assist in sharing our messages promoting environmental and social change.  Please share the news with any local groups you are connected with and encourage them to register their support. 

Together we will create a statewide network with a voice Legislators can no longer ignore.

CAFO Champ Rep. Scott Krug Hit with Suit Demanding Clean Water Emails

A journalist in Wisconsin has filed a lawsuit asking for water-related emails showing correspondence between the office of State Rep. Scott Krug (R-Nekoosa, Wisconsin) and constituents.

In an Open Records request, Bill Lueders, asked for requested material in an electronic form to make the predictable document dump searchable. The request asks for emails from January through April 8, 2016, the Associated Press reports, and covers a period during which Scott Krug pushed an anti-clean water measure opposed by constituents.

Krug is politically opposed by members of the clean water citizen group, Protect Wood County and Its Neighbors. Many in the citizen group regard the Republican Krug as running political interference for the Republican Party and Gov. Scott Walker's agenda to dismantle state protections for clean and safe water.

During the January-to-April 8 period covered in Lueders' request, Krug introduced legislation opposed by Protect Wood County and other citizen groups, (Mal Contends).

Citizens mobilize in Wood and Adams counties Wisconsin
to stop massive factory farm in central Wisconsin,
and to protect clean water

Wisconsin Assembly Bill 477 and Senate Bill 291 were introduced in the 2015-16 Wisconsin Legislative Session. The requested Jan-April timeframe by journalist Lueders is within the session's duration, continuing through early 2017.

Residents of Wood and Adams counties clashed with Krug, noting his introduced measure, (Assembly Bill 477), would have facilitated unpopular developments in central Wisconsin.

These opposed changes include the increased drawing of groundwater through high capacity wells, the poisoning of ground and surface water, the operation of the unpopular Wysocki factory farm, the plummeting of property valuations, and a threat to communities' recent attempt to promote central Wisconsin as a tourism and recreational mecca.

David Gorski is challenging State Rep. Scott Krug
in Wisconsin's Assembly District 72.

Clean and abundant water issues will define the race between Krug and clean water advocate, David Gorski, the Democratic Party nominee for Wisconsin's 72nd assembly district race.

Writes Bruce E. Dimick of Saratoga in Wood County, testifying in opposition to Senate Bill 291 on October 13, 2015 before the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Energy:

Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to speak here today.  My name is Bruce Dimick; I am from the Town of Saratoga Wisconsin, and am a member of the Protect Wood County and Its Neighbors organization. I have read SB 291 and was pleased by some aspects of the bill, but troubled by others.

One of those problem areas is the method used to identify a Sensitive Resource Area (SRA). I was a member of Representative Krug’s Citizen Advisory Groundwater Group when language similar to what is found in SB 291 was presented by Representative Krug with respect to Sensitive Resource Areas. I forcefully argued against this convoluted approach then, and I do so again today. To my knowledge, no one on the committee endorsed this approach, although many of us were in favor of the concept of Sensitive Resource Areas, or carve-outs.

Approval for a Sensitive Resource Area, (SRA), designation would, according to some estimates, take at least 10 years, during which any high-capacity wells that are approved for an area would be allowed to operate. By the time the SRA designation could be achieved much of the damage would already be done. Why work reactively when a proactive approach makes so much more sense both environmentally and economically?

In order to really understand the hydrogeology of an area like the Central Sands, you almost have to live there for a number of years, especially if you are from a more typical clay-loam environment.  We raised our family north of Appleton in the heart of dairy country during the ‘70’s and 80’s. This was typical clay-loam country like the country I grew up on in Northeastern Ohio. When we eventually moved to Saratoga, with its almost total lack of topsoil and all sand it took some getting used to. Without spray irrigation, our area is good for growing pine trees, but not much else.

One way to conceptualize the Central Sands area is think of it as a big tub full of sand filled almost to the top with water. All the water is connected. Streams, lakes and ponds are merely reflecting the local water table. As an example, we have a small dug pond on our property that has no typical inlet or outlet. Yet it is full of clean water and fish year round.  The ground water flows through our pond, slowly but continually, on its way to the Wisconsin River via one or more of the trout streams in the area.

The Central Sands area has been the subject of countless hydro geological studies done by the UWSP as well as the USGS and has already been identified as an environmentally sensitive region. The sensitivity of this aquifer is well documented, including a 2003 designation by the state legislature when groundwater management areas were identified.

The SRA designation should be made by the legislature proactively, now, just as it was in 2003 when groundwater management areas were identified.

If the entirety of the Central Sands area were designated as an SRA up front, then that would be a great improvement to this Bill.

I would ask the committee to go through a likely scenario for the Town of Saratoga if this bill is passed without modification. Saratoga home owners and small business’s are already being stressed by the threat that the aquifer supplying the residents of the town will be severely damaged. Housing prices have already plummeted, some by as much as 40-50%, and that is if you are lucky enough to sell your home. We are all dependent on private wells. The two wells on my property are 12’ sandpoints and our water tests unbelievably clean.

So if SB 291 becomes law without modification, and the Wysocki Family of Companies sinks their proposed 33 high capacity wells and lowers the water table as expected, many residents will have to construct new deeper wells.  And by the way, deeper does not always mean better. In areas like ours, the best water is frequently found near the top. Sand is a great filter.

Property values will continue to deteriorate and new houses will not be built in our rural residential community. Anybody that can move out, will move out. Perhaps a few hearty souls would prevail and eventually Saratoga and surrounding areas would be designated as an SRA after 7-10 years. The chances at that point of actually shutting down Wysocki’s 33 high capacity wells seems remote at best.

The damage will have been done and a rural community and its small businesses will suffer.

From the Associated Press, Aug. 19, 2016:

MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- A reporter has filed a lawsuit demanding a state lawmaker turn over more than 1,000 pages of records in an electronic format.

Bill Lueders, a reporter and president of the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council, filed the lawsuit Friday in Madison. He alleges he asked Rep. Scott Krug's office for correspondence with constituents over water issues from January through April 8.

The lawsuit alleges Krug's office released more than 1,000 pages even though he asked for the material electronically so he could search it easily.

Krug, a Nekoosa Republican, says he hadn't seen the lawsuit but insisted his office complied with the open records law. He said he thinks the lawsuit is politically motivated since Lueders gave it to reporters first.

Lueders says he only wants compliance with the law.

The Krug-David Gorski race is considered a prime pick-up opportunity for the Democratic Party.