A group of Wisconsin legislators spent more than five hours Thursday listening to experts, advocates and residents who gathered in Racine . The topic was water quality and how to improve it. Water quality has become a buzz phrase in Wisconsin. During his first state of the state report, Gov. Tony Evers declared 2019 "the year of clean drinking water." Weeks earlier Assembly Speaker Robin Vos began setting up a task force to determine the key sources of water contamination and ways to remedy them

Milwaukee experienced the largest outbreak of cryptosporidium in the spring of 1993. The outbreak made 400,000 sick. Over 4,000 were hospitalized. And 104 deaths were recorded. It made a lasting impression for many who got sick or simply lived through it.

Some people are concerned about the many lead pipes that deliver water into older Milwaukee homes. Others applaud the city for tackling stormwater management through green infrastructure . But how is Milwaukee doing at creating a comprehensive water management plan? When it comes to water, Jenny Kehl has an unabashedly candid view on the importance of planning for today and the future. Kehl is a global water security scholar for UW-Milwaukee and associate professor at its School of Freshwater

Wisconsin scientists are working on new ways to protect drinking and surface water from pollutants. They’re also investigating better methods of cleaning water that's already contaminated. But researchers say success may cost taxpayers more money. Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Secretary Preston Cole has been promising to place a higher priority on good science when crafting policy. For example, he hopes better research will lead to cleaner drinking water. » See More Project Milwaukee:

WUWM's Project Milwaukee series Great Lakes, Troubled Waters is examining the topic of clean water, or the lack thereof, in southeastern Wisconsin — particularly in a place like Milwaukee that considers itself to be a "water hub." Water hubs are places where industry, research, and academia converge in their efforts to create sustainable efforts or create new technology utilizing one of our most precious resources. » See More Project Milwaukee: Great Lakes, Troubled Waters Stories Dean Amhaus is

Quality is perhaps the most important part of any water distribution system. Water utilities process every drop that makes it into our plumbing, which takes a lot of time and energy. One way to keep from overburdening the system is by reducing our consumption — what we know as "water conservation." Bill Graffin works for the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District , which works in wastewater treatment and conservation efforts in the Milwaukee area. Here are some helpful tips from Graffin on how

In discussions about the health and safety of water, it’s typical to hear from experts, public health officials and government leaders. But you don't often get the opinions of younger people who are just beginning to learn and care about natural resources. Young people working with Cream City Conservation Corps are having some real conversations about the environment. August Ball leads the discussion at the group’s regular Tuesday night meeting in the Silver City neighborhood on Milwaukee's

Rainstorms are a challenge to clean water. They can cause flooding and potentially damaging runoff . But utilities, landscape architects and others are finding solutions — visible everywhere from the county grounds to your neighborhood ice cream shop. In 2011, MMSD built a large basin on the Milwaukee County Grounds. It's a 17-foot-deep sunken pool with grassy walls that, when full, looks like two connected natural lagoons. The basin can hold up to 315 million gallons of water. » See More

Both cryptosporidium and lead have threatened Milwaukee’s clean drinking water. While there are stark differences in the two water contaminants, what can we learn from how the city dealt with both? First, it’s important to state that cryptosporidium and lead are completely different. Crypto is a bacteria. Lead is a metal. Crypto has one parasitic source, while lead has many (paint, dust, dirt, pipes). Crypto makes people visibly sick, but lead can be in the body for a long time without showing

When the Lead and Copper Rule was first issued in 1991, it put federal limits on the acceptable amount of these metals found in drinking water. Cities started testing their water. Researchers experimented with chemicals that could inhibit the corrosion of pipes — the main source of contamination. But for some cities, like Madison, Wis., that simply wasn’t enough. "[The Lead and Copper Rule] has a fundamental flaw, and that is: it's over-simplistic. It doesn't acknowledge the multiple factors by