Land and Water Conservation department reports groundwater study: some wells exceed arsenic standard; nitrate screening events announced

Patricia Cicero, director of the Land and Water Conservation Department, presented the department’s annual report May 21, outlining staffing, programs and recent groundwater sampling results conducted in partnership with UW–Stevens Point.

Cicero said the office runs major programs including a land and water resources management plan and a 'Bridal Preservation' program that had roughly 600 participants covering more than 100,000 acres. She described a UW–Stevens Point–partnered groundwater sampling effort that recruited well owners, analyzed samples and produced preliminary findings: areas of the county have naturally occurring arsenic and about 7% of the wells sampled exceeded the human-health standard for arsenic. Cicero emphasized available treatments and the department’s outreach plans, including nitrate screening opportunities at a Health Department open house on June 22 and at the county fair July 10–12. She said a final study report and an online dashboard would be published in June.

Board members asked about a Lake Ripley management-district study; Cicero and a Lake Ripley representative clarified that the Lake Ripley Management District conducted that evaluation under a DNR grant and that the county was not the primary author of that particular study.