About Brown and Caldwell

BC Pages

Asset Management

CMOM

Infrastructure Funding

Water Resources

Staff

Andy Lukas, Editor
Email

Tiffany Silverman, Editor
Email

Last week's edition

About this Newsletter

February 28, 2005

Latest postings:

• OH: Brown and Caldwell:  Engineer I
• FL: Brown and Caldwell: Area Bus Ops Mgr II
• TN: Brown and Caldwell: Supervising Engineer
• CA: West & Central Basin MWD: Sr. Recycled Water Program Specialist
• CA: Vista Irrigation District: GIS Systems Specialist
   

Want more? See all postings.

National/International News

—  Water Quality

• Toxic plume found near Colorado River intakes
  (LA Times, 02/23) "California environmental officials said Tuesday that they would require Pacific Gas & Electric Co. to step up cleanup work near a Mojave Desert natural gas facility to prevent a plume of tainted groundwater from seeping into the Colorado River."
  
  
• Los Alamos scientists look for paths of water contamination
  (Albuquerque Journal, 02/23) "Dating the age of water flowing from a series of natural springs along the Rio Grande could help state and Los Alamos National Laboratory scientists identify the water's source— and possible paths for contamination."
  
  
• Red Cross: Unclean water kills thousands
  (Kansas City Star, 02/23) "Chronic lack of clean water and sanitation in the developing world kills as many people every month as last year's Indian Ocean tsunami, the international Red Cross said Thursday."
  
  
• EPA considers contaminants for future drinking water regulations
  (U.S. Newswire, 02/23) Press Release. "EPA is researching and evaluating a list of 51 unregulated, new or emerging drinking water contaminants for possible regulation. The Contaminant Candidate List (CCL) process was established by the 1996 Amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) as a tracking and priority-setting mechanism to determine if new regulations are needed to protect drinking water safety."
  
  
• P&G donates water cleanser to tsunami areas
  (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 02/24) "Like plenty of multinationals, the U.S. consumer-products maker rushed to offer aid to victims of the tsunami, shipping 28 million packets of the water purifier to affected parts of southern Asia. What is different is that the product P&G is airlifting was a corporate bust."
  
  
• Schools in Durango, Colo., flush water systems to clear lead
  (Durango Herald, 02/25) "The lead content in the water at three Durango elementary schools exceeds the Environmental Protection Agency's recommended levels, according to test results released this week."
  

—  Water Supply

• California water supplies still not normal
  (LA Times, 02/24) "This year may set records for the most rain, but it won't be enough to reverse the impact of five years of drought on Southern California's water supplies, weather experts and water officials said Wednesday."
  
  
• Washington state bill allows more reclaimed water
  (Kittitas Daily Record, 02/24) "State Rep. Bill Hinkle wants state government to allow private water companies to get permits to reclaim water for reuse, something needed in drought conditions."
  
  
• Western South Dakota drought has gotten worse
  (Aberdeen News, 02/25) "Forecasters and other weather experts say the continuing drought has gotten worse this winter in western South Dakota and likely will continue through May."
  

—  Perchlorate

• Study: Perchlorate found in breast milk samples
  (Science Daily, 02/24) Press Release. "In a new study of breast milk and store-bought milk from across the United States , scientists at Texas Tech University found perchlorate in every sample but one. The results suggest that this thyroid-disrupting chemical may be more widespread than previously believed."
  
  
• Breast milk study being misread, head of science panel says
  (Rocky Mountain News, 02/25) "A study that found perchlorate contamination in human breast milk is significant, but the results are being misinterpreted, said the head of the National Academy of Science panel that investigated the toxic chemical."
  

—  Water Resources

• Governors, tribal leaders to nominate projects for watershed grants
  (WaterWorld, 02/21) "To further protect and restore the country's waterways, the Bush Administration is calling on the nation's governors and tribal leaders to apply for the third round of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency watershed grants."
  
  
• Manitoba's Devil's Lake outlet appeal gets boost from commission
  (Bismark Tribune, 02/21) "Manitoba's bid for an international review of the Devils Lake water diversion project has received a boost from the eight U.S. states that are part of the Great Lakes Commission."
  
  
• Ohio River pipeline spill vastly underestimated
  (Kentucky Post, 02/22) "The severity of the pipeline rupture that dumped crude oil into the Kentucky and Ohio rivers last month was underestimated by nearly 20,000 gallons."
  
  
• Great Salt Lake mercury worries scientists
  (ENN, 02/22) "Federal scientists studying the Great Salt Lake have found some of the highest levels of mercury ever measured anywhere -- prompting concern about some of the migratory birds that feed on the lake's brine shrimp."
  
  
• Marshes of southern Iraq
  (Economist, 02/24) "ONE of the many tragedies of Saddam Hussein's rule was his ecological vandalism of the marshlands of Mesopotamia. The Iraqi marshlands once stretched across 20,000 square kilometres and were home to hundreds of thousands of marsh Arabs."
  
  
• Discharge permits in Chesapeake watershed require nutrient limits
  (Chesapeake Bay Journal, 02/25) "After two decades of reliance on non-regulatory efforts to control nitrogen discharges, the EPA and the states will begin requiring that enforceable limits be part of the permits for more than 350 of the largest wastewater dischargers in the Bay watershed."
  
  
• Report: Canada's Thunder Bay is cleaner
  (Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal, 02/25) "Most of the work that needed to be done to clean and protect Thunder Bay’s shoreline and its offshore waters has been done, the Thunder Bay Public Advisory Committee reported this week."
  

—  Wastewater

• New wastewater discharge standards in Georgia OK'd
  (Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 02/22) "State environmental regulators gave Gwinnett County a tentative go-ahead Monday to discharge up to 40 million gallons a day of treated sewage into Lake Lanier."
  

—  Air Quality

• European Union pact to curb mercury is rejected
  (BBC News, 02/25) "The European Union said the pact was required to curb the use of the toxic heavy metal, known to cause nerve damage and harm children in the womb."
  

—  Hazardous/Toxic Waste

• EPA challenges Navy on pollution
  (San Jose Mercury News, 02/24) "The federal Environmental Protection Agency and state Regional Water Quality Board are dragging the U.S. Navy to the table to resolve an environmental dispute over toxic cleanup at Moffett Field, EPA officials confirmed Wednesday."
  

—  Landfill/Solid Waste

• Recycling's next frontier: Poop as paper
  (MSNBC, 02/22) "Inspired by elephant dung, an Australian company plans to use kangaroo poop to make stationery and other paper products."
  
  
• EPA approves D.C. cleanup plan
  (Waste News, 02/25) "The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has proposed a soil and groundwater clean up plan for the Southeast Federal Center in Washington, D.C., on a section known as the U.S. Department of Transportation parcel."
  

—  Everything Else

• Book Review: Wars for Water
  (WaterTech Online, 02/21) "How do war, litigation, political intrigue and water all connect? Find out in H. Court Young's book Understanding Water Rights and Conflicts."
  
  
• AWWA and the Research Foundation publish new book titled: Message Management: Effective Communications
  (AWWA, 02/24) "This workbook presents 'how to' communication planning activities which are designed to help a water utility develop or revise a basic communication plan. Focus is on the specifics of communication planning: goals, objectives, strategies and tactics, using a model based on history, current needs, and other factors unique to the utility."
  

Illinois

—  Water Supply

• EPA grant is looking better to Spring Valley officials
  (Bureau County Republican, 02/22) "A $357,500 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency has begun looking a whole lot better to Spring Valley officials."
  
  

• Illiopolis to move water main
  (Springfield State Journal Register, 02/23) "A $200,000 state grant will allow Illiopolis to move its water main from the blast-damaged Formosa Plastics site, giving the village full control of its water source."
  
  

• Canton panel recommends completing water project
  (Canton Daily Ledger, 02/23) "The balance of the project to improve the water and sewer system in Canton was recommended for approval Tuesday during a meeting of the city council's Mechanical Committee."
  
  

• Grant allows Rob Roy to monitor lake water
  (Des Plaines Journal & Topics, 02/23) "Prospect Hts. staff plan to use $1 million in grant funding to install a water monitoring system for the Lake Michigan water mains in the Rob Roy area."
  

—  Water Resources

• Fulton County landowners offer help with wetland improvements
  (Canton Daily Ledger, 02/22) "Landowners in Fulton County and nine other counties along the Illinois River are eligible to receive cost share assistance to install multi-purpose soil, water and wetland conservation practices on their property."
  
  
• Keep a close watch on those fish
  (Tinley Park Star, 02/24) "A new booklet from Illinois Sea Grant asserts that, while fish caught from area lakes and rivers are chock full of nutrients, they are often contaminated with pollutants that can have serious health effects, particularly on growing babies and children."
  
  
• Designer compost helps keep phosphorus out of water supplies
  (Illinois Farm Bureau, 02/25) "There are designer handbags and designer shoes, so why not designer compost? Agricultural Research Service scientists are studying environmentally friendly composts that help keep phosphorus from seeping into water supplies."
  

—  Wastewater

• Lakemoor, water district do battle over sewage
  (Chicago Daily Herald, 02/25) "Lakemoor is inching closer to building its own sewage treatment plant, while another sewage provider in Island Lake has unveiled expansion plans to service hundreds of acres of undeveloped land, including parts of Lakemoor."
  

—  Everything Else

• Geneva water rates will rise as expected
  (Chicago Daily Herald, 02/23) "Though the estimate for Geneva's water projects, including a new treatment plant, has jumped $10 million, rate hikes should keep with previous estimates."
  

Indiana

—  Water Supply

• Upland mulls new water plant
  (Marion Chronicle Tribune, 02/22) "Because of pressure from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, the town council will be replacing the town's more than 40-year-old water treatment plant."
   

—  Water Resources

• High levels of E. coli found in St. Joseph River
  (Fort Wayne News Sentinel, 02/19) "The 2004 water quality report on the St. Joseph River, released Friday by the St. Joseph River Watershed Initiative, shows the waterway’s overall pesticides remain low on average."
  
  
• Kosciusko County Citizens honored for conservation efforts
  (Warsaw Times-Union, 02/23) "For their conservation efforts, Dennis Walther and John L. Parker were honored as River-Friendly Farmers. The men use practices that protect and enhance Indiana’s rivers, lakes and streams."
  
  
• Indiana Harbor Ship Canal in danger of more contamination
  (NWI Times, 02/25) "A fracturing sea wall along the Indiana Harbor Ship Canal has put local, state and federal agencies in crisis mode."
  
  
• Give cities flexibility to clean up water
  (Indianapolis Star, 02/25) Editorial. "A proposal to give Indiana communities leeway in cleaning up waterways recognizes reality. In an ideal world, Hoosiers wouldn't dump untreated sewage in any rivers or streams, period."
  

—  Wastewater

• Bill, EPA may help state with sewage woes
  (Indianapolis Star, 02/21) "Proposals before the state legislature and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency are aimed at helping cities and towns begin the expensive task of stemming billions of gallons of untreated sewage that overflow into rivers and streams each year from antiquated sewer systems."
  
  
• State may cede power to control sewage releases
  (NWI Times, 02/21) "Conservationists worried about an all-Republican Statehouse are choking on an environmental bill they call polluted."
   

—  Hazardous/Toxic Waste

• Princeton still waiting for work on brownfield grant application
  (Princeton Daily Clarion, 02/23) "The city's still waiting for word on progress in obtaining a federal brownfield grant to decontaminate and level the former Universal Scientific metal-plating plant on Old U.S. 41."
  
  
• Firm attributes missing Eagle Creek waste to evaporation
  (NWI Times, 02/24) "The 70,000 tons of trash reported missing by state environmental officials apparently disappeared into thin air, an attorney for a local waste facility said Wednesday. No, really, it evaporated."
  

—  Air Quality

• Forum to clear the air on Fort Wayne environment
  (Fort Wayne News Sentinel, 02/22) "If there’s one thing everybody has a stake in, it’s the air we breathe. That’s why the Friends of the Parks will present a forum Wednesday at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne on air quality here."
  

—  Everything Else

• Marion face 81% increase in water rates for better quality
  (Marion Chronicle Tribune, 02/22) "An increase is inevitable, if Marion wants to continue to have high-quality water. The water utility has been neglected for more than a decade, and, because of steps taken to cut costs, water quality has decreased."
  
  
• Battle continues over Portage water charges
  (NWI Times, 02/25) "They each came with a story. Jim Sheely said he was charged $61 one month for not using any water. The next month's charge was $69 for using 7,000 gallons."
  

Michigan

—  Water Supply

• Water bill awareness event hosted by Montague FFA
  (White Lake Beacon, 02/21) "Water diversion is the movement of water from the Great Lakes basin to other areas, such as the Western United States. Water diversion regulations would effect many types of water users, including industrial, commercial, agricultural, and residential water usage."
  
  
• Battle looming over costs to fix Muskegon water main
  (Muskegon Chronicle, 02/21) "Costs of repairing a water main break that temporarily cut off service to Muskegon Heights residents last month are still being tallied."
  
  
• On tap: Manton competes for best water in the world
  (Cadillac News, 02/23) "Give the water in Manton a try. After all, the municipality has already won the award for best drinking water in Michigan from the American Water Works Association. And this weekend, Manton is vying for the best tap water in the world."
  
  
• Test well approved for Sand Lake area
  (Grand Rapids Press, 02/22) "Sand Lake will spend $4,785 to drill a hole in the ground to find out whether it's a good spot to spend $130,000 more."
  
  
• Flint City Council wrong about water
  (Flint Journal, 02/22) Opinion. "Once again the Flint City Council has made the wrong decision. The council's recent decision to not spend $1.4 million for design and engineering to bring the Flint water plant on-line shows that some of the council members do not understand the importance of Flint and Genesee County getting out of the clutches of Detroit."
  
  
• Allegan County gets grant to test water
  (Grand Rapids Press, 02/25) "The Allegan County Health Department has received a grant of $9,572 that will be used for testing water quality on Lake Michigan at four county beaches."
  
  
• Hurley water project cost $1.8 million
  (Ironwood Daily Globe, 02/25) "The cost of connecting a proposed well near the Hurley K-12 school to the city's water distribution system was pegged at $1.8 million by an engineer this week."
  

—  Water Resources

• Michigan moves to confront invasive species
  (South Bend Tribune, 02/21) "Invasive plant and animal species continue to be a major problem in Michigan and the state hopes to help the situation through education and legislation."
  
  
• Deal reached for pollution cleanup at Bay Harbor resort
  (Detroit Free Press, 02/22) "A deal has been reached to clean up pollution oozing into Lake Michigan from cement kiln dust piles on the grounds of the Bay Harbor luxury resort, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday."
  
  
• Source of Lange and Revere canal PCBs to be discussed at meeting
  (Macomb Daily, 02/23) "When PCB contamination was discovered more than three years ago in the Lange and Revere canal in St. Clair Shores, many residents and city leaders were devoid of answers. Tonight they may get some."
  
  
• Threat of lawsuit credited getting Lobdell Lake dam fixed
  (Flint Journal, 02/23) "The county has repaired the faulty Lobdell Lake dam and largely eliminated a flooding threat to lakeshore homes."
  
  
• Water-protection hearing draws people from all sides
  (Grand Rapids Press, 02/24) "An eclectic blend of people attended a meeting on proposed regulations designed to protect streams, rivers and ponds."
  
  
• Fishermen want to send dirty Saginaw water message to governor
  (Bay City Times, 02/24) "Sport fishermen who use the Saginaw River and Bay are sending a message to Gov. Jennifer Granholm - they're tired of seeing the waters used as a toilet by cities and corporations."
  
  
• Macomb County to act on wetland rules
  (Detroit News, 02/25) "The Macomb County Water Quality Board will renew efforts to draft a countywide wetland protection ordinance following a setback to establish the county's first such law in Ray Township."
  
  
• Storms raise the Lakes, hopes of Metro boaters
  (Detroit News, 02/25) "Months of snow and rain in southeast Michigan have chased away the sun, but not a silver lining: The Great Lakes are up to 18 inches higher than last winter."
  
  
• Conference addresses urban water planning
  (MSU State News, 02/25) "MSU ecologist Erin Dreelin has only lived in Michigan for a few months, but she said she's ready to make her mark in the state. She is part of a growing community of people who attended the Smart Growth for Clean Water Conference 2005 on Thursday at the Kellogg Center and are trying to change the ecology of cities, she said."
   

—  Wastewater

• Sewer study underway in Marysville
  (The Voice, 02/23) "The engineers investigating Marysville's storm and sanitary sewers are getting close to wrapping up the data collection portion of their study."
  
  
• Richmond enters into agreement with MDEQ
  (The Voice, 02/23) "Last May torrential flooding caused many problems in Richmond, including the release of 27,000 gallons of untreated sanitary sewage. When the heavy rains fell, a manhole cover near the Division and Skinner Road pump station floated off, allowing the untreated sewage to flow into a storm drain ditch."
  
  
• Ionia County dairy waste questioned
  (Grand Rapids Press, 02/23) "About 100 residents voiced concerns at a hearing Tuesday on a 3,800-head dairy operation proposed for Orleans Township. Most were worried about waste water and odor issues."
  
  
• Stupak claims bipartisan support for position on sewage blending
  (Petosky News-Review, 02/23) "Congressman Bart Stupak, D-Menominee, with the support of 135 Democrat and Republican members of the House, has urged acting Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Stephen Johnson not to implement a proposal to allow partially treated human sewage to be dumped into the nation's waterways, including the Great Lakes."
  

—  Landfill/Solid Waste

• Democrats' plan would stop trash from Canada
  (Petosky News-Review, 02/22) "Democratic legislators, including Rep. Gary McDowell, D-Rudyard, on Monday announced a plan to stem the tide of trash from Canada and elsewhere into the state."
  
  
• Trash imports rise 17% at Mich. dumps
  (Detroit News, 02/23) "Trash exported to Michigan from Canada and other states jumped 17 percent last year despite state efforts to curtail it, adding to pressure for tougher restrictions."
  
  
• New Haven landfill sees jump in trash from Canada
  (Macomb Daily, 02/24) "The Pine Tree Acres landfill near New Haven has become the state's busiest garbage dump, largely because of a huge increase in the amount of Canadian trash trucked there daily."
  
  
• Kentwood seeks final landfill cleanup grant
  (Grand Rapids Press, 02/24) "Officials say that is what they are working for in an effort to finish cleaning up a landfill near City Hall. The 72-acre site operated as a landfill from the mid-1950s through 1976. The city received grants from a state landfill remediation program from 1998 through 2001, but that program ended in a round of 2002 budget cuts."
  

Minnesota

—  Water Resources

• Clean water: Alas, a 'user fee' is necessary
  (Minneapolis Star Tribune, 02/20) Editorial. "Minnesota appears poised to create an $80 million-a-year program to inspect and restore the state's polluted waters."
  
  
• Herbicide's ban unlikely, for now
  (St. Paul Pioneer Press, 02/21) "For the better part of a half-century, atrazine has been the weed-killer of choice for Minnesota's corn farmers. Not only is it affordable, farmers say, it's effective in relatively small amounts, especially when used with other chemicals."
  
  
• Bill would use lottery to clean streams
  (Fargo Forum, 02/23) "A freshman lawmaker from northern Minnesota wants to use more lottery proceeds to clean up the state's lakes, rivers and streams."
  
  
• New flood plain map an eye-opener for Crookston
  (Crookston Daily Times, 02/23) "The good news, Mike MacDonald said Tuesday evening, is that it appears the recently completed flood control project in Crookston will reduce the town's 100-year flood damage potential by about 60 percent."
  
  
• Cleaning up Minnesota's waters costly
  (Fargo Forum, 02/25) "A proposed fee on residents and businesses could be the biggest stumbling block facing a bill designed to clean up Minnesota's waters."
  

—  3M Perfluorochemicals Report

This five-part series entitled "Toxic Traces" was published by Minnesota Public Radio on February 22nd.

• Part 1: The science
  (Minnesota Public Radio, 02/22) "3M's announcement in 2000 that it was phasing out its popular Scotchgard product led to a major investigation by the Federal Environmental Protection Agency."
  
  
• Part 2: The neighbors
  (Minnesota Public Radio, 02/22) "Before there was an MPCA or even a Superfund cleanup program, people who lived near 3M's Cottage Grove plant and its nearby Woodbury landfill had questions."
  
  
• Part 3: The politics
  (Minnesota Public Radio, 02/22) "Republican Gov.-elect Tim Pawlenty named Sheryl Corrigan to be commmissioner of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency in 2002. The governor said he was looking for an environmental watchdog with a business perspective."
  
  
• Part 4: The company
  (Minnesota Public Radio, 02/22) "Much of what the EPA knows about these chemicals comes from the manufacturers. 3M's studies tend to focus on male plant workers rather than pregnant women, the children of workers or the people who live near the plants."
  
  
• Part 5: The future
  (Minnesota Public Radio, 02/22) "DuPont continues to produce PFOA at its plant in West Virginia. In Decatur, Alabama, Dyneon, a subsidiary of 3M, reported to the EPA it continues to use small amounts of PFOA in certain products."
  
  
• The long reach of perfluorinated chemicals
  (Minnesota Public Radio, 02/22) "The mysteries are many when it comes to perfluorochemicals. Not the least of which is this -- how is it that chemicals no longer made in the U.S. are turning up in the bloodstreams of creatures found nowhere near chemical plants?"
   

—  Wastewater

• Officials decry Bush water-treatment budget
  (Minneapolis Star Tribune, 02/20) "State officials say they will fight a provision in President Bush's budget plan that would effectively cut more than $20 million in financing for Minnesota sewage treatment plant upgrades."
  

Ohio

—  Water Supply

• Water cited as culprit in South Bass Island illness
  (Toledo Blade, 02/23) "Widespread groundwater contamination on South Bass Island has been identified as the likely cause of a gastrointestinal illness outbreak that sickened more than 1,400 residents and visitors last summer, local, state, and federal officials said yesterday."
  
  
• Columbus sets water-quality meeting
  (Columbus This Week, 02/24) "Columbus is seeking input on a 30-year, $2-billion-plus project to improve water quality around the city."
  

—  Water Resources

• Ducks Unlimited wetlands conservation news upbeat
  (Toledo Blade, 02/22) "Attendees at this week's Ohio Ducks Unlimited annual meeting are being presented an upbeat progress report on wetlands conservation in the state, including several important projects in northwest Ohio in which DU has been instrumental."
  
  
• Wolf Creek cleanup proposal hits logjam
  (Toledo Blade, 02/22) "Ronald Willoughby has lived along Wolf Creek since 1962, and he recalls when the Sandusky River tributary was slow-moving, clear, and full of creatures."
  
  
• Purchase protects Aurora Wetlands
  (Akron Beacon Journal, 02/25) "Sewer projects in Wadsworth and Wooster are protecting a 250-acre wetland in Aurora. The $4.35 million purchase of the Aurora Wetlands on the south side of state Route 82 near the Summit-Portage county line was announced Thursday by the city of Aurora, the Trust for Public Land and the Chagrin River Land Conservancy."
  

—  Wastewater

• Methane gas boosts sewer project's time, cost
  (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 02/19) "A vein of explosive methane gas found last year under McCracken Road will add an estimated $19 million to the regional sewer district's deep tunnel water pollution control project."
  
  
• Delphos will borrow $36 million to build plant
  (Delphos Herald, 02/24) "Earlier this month, the city hired Peterson Construction to build a new wastewater plant. Members of city council on Tuesday approved a $36 million loan application to pay for it."
  

—  Landfill/Hazardous Waste

• Officials seek funding for silt-to-mine proposal
  (Toledo Blade, 02/22) "Despite anticipated budget cuts, Toledo-area officials still hope to get several million state and federal dollars to pay for showing how abandoned strip mines in southeastern Ohio could be filled with silt from western Lake Erie."
  
  
• Winton Hills waste transfer station denied
  (Cincinnati Enquirer, 02/24) "The Cincinnati Board of Health has voted for the fourth time in four years to deny Waste Management of Ohio, Inc. a license to operate a waste transfer station at the now-closed ELDA Landfill on Este Avenue."
  
  
• Activists battle EPA over radiation at Uniontown landfill
  (Akron Beacon Journal, 02/24) "The question of whether radioactive materials are buried in a closed Uniontown landfill continues to simmer -- with a new debate between a grass-roots group and state and federal agencies."
  

Wisconsin

—  Water Supply

• Lake Michigan water: barrier or binder for southeastern Wisconsin
  (Milwaukee Freeman Newspapers, 02/22) "2005 may hold the answer to a decades-old question - can Milwaukee County and its suburbs co-exist? Divining a solution will likely have Lake Michigan water as the focus."
  
  
• Green Bay water pipeline pieces fall into place
  (Green Bay Press Gazette, 02/22) "While Green Bay residents won’t start seeing trenches for new water lines to Ashwaubenon in their neighborhoods until this spring, a team of 16 workers with a half-dozen mammoth machines is making its way through the muck of a Kewaunee County swamp in a less visible project to boost the city’s water capacity."
  
  
• Fond du Lac council discusses radium solutions
  (Fond du Lac Reporter, 02/23) "Two resolutions on the agenda pertain to compliance with federally mandated levels of radium in the city drinking water."
  
  
• City of Delafield, Village Square pact approved
  (Lake County Reporter, 02/24) "United Properties of Minneapolis agreed to contribute $1.2 million for expansion of city water service and $300,000 for development of sanitary sewer service near the shopping center site."
  
  
• Seymour club offers free arsenic checks to community
  (Green Bay Press Gazette, 02/24) "It’s odorless, tasteless and colorless, but people who drink it day after day--not smelling, tasting or seeing it -- are increasing their risk of developing cancer and other serious illnesses."
  

—  Water Resources

• Forum addresses smelly algae problem
  (Sheboygan Press, 02/20) "Presented by the Wisconsin Dept. of Natural Resources, the University of Wisconsin Sea Grant, the UW-Extension, the Wisconsin Coastal Management Program and National Oceanic Atmospheric Association, the forum drew people from up and down the Lake Michigan shoreline, including DNR experts, members of local municipalities and ordinary citizens who were concerned with the aesthetic, ecological and economic impacts the cladophora wash-up presents."
  
  
• MMSD, contractor face $1.65 million in fines
  (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 02/22) "The Milwaukee sewerage district and a Racine construction firm face up to $1.65 million in state fines for alleged environmental violations that occurred during the Lincoln Creek flood-control project from 2001 to '03."
  
  
• Wood County needs help fighting water pests
  (Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune, 02/24) "Wood County officials are seeking volunteers to help combat the spread of invasive species in local bodies of water."
  
  
• Money, politics are big issues for City of Delafield dam
  (Oconomowoc Focus, 02/24) "After two hours of detailed discussions over environmental and regulatory issues, it appears that the fate of Margaret Zerwekh's millpond dam may be determined by money and politics."
  

—  Wastewater

• Emmpak reaches pollution settlement
  (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 02/22) "Emmpak Foods Inc. has installed equipment to prevent grease, oil and animal parts from clogging local sewers and has agreed to donate $30,000 to two community groups as part of a settlement of a federal lawsuit brought by two environmental groups."
  
  
• Panel says it's open to all sewer options for Milwaukee, suburbs
  (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 02/22) "Regional planners studying Milwaukee's overflowing sewage assured suburban officials Tuesday that 'everything is on the table' in looking for ways to combat the regional problem."
  

—  Landfill/Solid Waste

• Company fined for violating landfill gas regulations in Whitelaw
  (Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter, 02/24) "Waste Management Inc. has agreed to pay $128,359 for violating, at its Ridgeview Recycling and Disposal Facility in Whitelaw, laws that regulate landfill gas collections systems, Wisconsin Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager announced on Wednesday."
  

—  Everything Else

• Menomonee Falls trustees raise sewer rates 15.6%
  (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 02/21) "Trustees raised municipal sewer rates 15.6% at their meeting on Monday, an increase they said comes as part of long-scheduled Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District maintenance."