Polluted Runoff:
Protecting Wisconsin's Water Quality by Eliminating Polluted Runoff

With shorelines on the Mississippi River and two of the Great Lakes, over 15,000 inland lakes, and more than 80,000 miles of rivers and streams, Wisconsin is rich in water resources. These water resources support our lifestyle and economy. However, beneath the surface, and sometimes floating on it, lies a heavy load of phosphorus, sediment, bacteria, toxins and other pollutants. Various forms of polluted runoff-from urban areas, fertilized lawns, construction sites, and agricultural fields and barnyards-harm aquatic plants and animals, raise water temperatures in our lakes and streams, and hurt water quality. Polluted runoff is responsible for serious economic, environmental, and human health consequences in Wisconsin. It is now Wisconsin's leading cause of reduced water quality, contributing nitrates, sediment, phosphorous, ammonia, and numerous pathogens to Wisconsin's waters.

Clean Wisconsin is working hard to protect Wisconsin's water quality in a number of ways.

At the statewide level, we are working to obtain a fully funded polluted runoff program through the state budget bill as well as advocating legislation prohibiting winter spreading of manure adjacent to water bodies. We are working to establish a riparian buffer requirement along agricultural fields in Wisconsin, to increase state enforcement of water quality programs, and to support efforts to establish a ban on phosphorus in lawn fertilizers.

At the regional level, we are involved in two watershed planning projects focused on
creating a community vision for the watershed, and crafting a proactive, achievable and affordable plan for their improvement.

In Dane County, we are a part of the Yahara Lakes Legacy Partnership. The Yahara Lakes Legacy Partnership is a collaborative effort that brings together a wide range of parties to improve the quality of the lakes connected by the Yahara River in south-central Wisconsin's Capital region. The five Yahara River watershed lakes-Mendota, Monona, Wingra, Waubesa, and Kegonsa-are of tremendous economic and cultural value to Madison and surrounding areas. Though much work has gone into cleaning them up over the years, these lakes still suffer from too-frequent algae blooms, pollution, and beach closures in the summer.

We are also part of the Southeastern Wisconsin Watersheds Trust which aims to "achieve healthy and sustainable water resources throughout the Greater Milwaukee River Watersheds," including the Kinnickinnic, Menomonee, Milwaukee, and Root rivers; Oak Creek; Lake Michigan direct drainage; the Milwaukee Harbor estuary; and near-shore Lake Michigan. Specifically, Clean Wisconsin is working to identify available options under existing Wisconsin law, or perhaps even with changes to the law, for fostering a collaborative watershed clean-up on this scale. This has never really been tried before, certainly not in Wisconsin. Our legal and water policy expertise serve us well there.