Abstract
In the Silurian Dolostone region of eastern Wisconsin, the combination of thin soils and waste application (animal manure, organic waste) has led to significant groundwater contamination, including Brown Water Incidents (BWIs—contamination resulting in a color or odor change in well water) and detections of pathogen indicator bacteria such as E. coli and others. In response, a Karst Task Force (KTF) was convened to identify risks and recommend solutions. This article looks at the impact eight years after the 2007 Karst Task Force report—both the actions taken by local resource managers and the changes to water quality. We present the first regional analysis of the 2007 Karst Task Force report and subsequent regulatory changes to determine if these regulations impacted the prevalence of wells contaminated with animal waste and the frequency of BWIs. While all of the counties in the KTF area promoted increased awareness, landowner/manager and waste applicator education alone did not result in a drop in BWIs or other water quality improvements. The two counties in the study that adopted winter manure spreading restrictions on frozen or snow-covered ground showed statistically significant reductions in the instances of BWIs and other well water quality problems.
Highlights
Karst regions are widespread across the world, and approximately 20%–25% of the global population depends on groundwater resources obtained directly from karst aquifers [1]
The Karst Task Force (KTF) was charged with examining the available scientific data and with making recommendations on how to address the groundwater contamination problem
The Task Force consisted of researchers and experts from five University of Wisconsin institutions, resource managers from county Land and Water Conservation Departments, and the state environmental agencies
Summary
Karst regions are widespread across the world, and approximately 20%–25% of the global population depends on groundwater resources obtained directly from karst aquifers [1]. Conduits, such as sinkholes and swallow holes, provide direct access points that connect water in the surface environment to the karst aquifer below, often bringing with it contaminants that would not normally enter the aquifer by diffuse recharge, such as phosphate, pesticides, and pathogens [2]. Impacts to karst aquifers from pathogens and nitrates have been reported in karst aquifers from many parts of the world (e.g., [2,3,4,5,6]), and contamination from multiple sources, including animal waste, are well documented in parts of Wisconsin and the Midwestern United States where a regional
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