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Cattle, humans both help taint wells in Wisconsin's Kewaunee County

In a new study of groundwater conditions in dairy farm-intensive Kewaunee County, researchers found higher levels of well contamination from cattle during wet weather events — when manure, rain and melting snow can seep quickly into the ground. But the results also show that cattle in this northeastern county are not the only source of tainted drinking water. Human waste from sanitary systems is also polluting wells. The study is the latest research on factors affecting groundwater pollution in a region where tensions over large-scale farms are the greatest in Wisconsin. “The bottom line is that both kinds of mammals — large animals and humans on the landscape — are to blame,” said Mark A. Borchardt, a microbiologist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, whose work was funded by the Department of Natural Resources. Kewaunee County has one of the highest concentrations of large-scale farms in the state. The farms have come under sharp criticism for having an out-sized impact. Borchardt's study sampled water during three periods in 2016 and found polluted water was often traced to sanitary systems during relatively dry periods. But during wet conditions when groundwater was being recharged, polluted water was linked to cattle.

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Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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