Project editor Ron Seely discusses how drinking water may be contaminated with arsenic. Arsenic exists in wells across the state, concentrated mostly in northeast Wisconsin. Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism's story, written by Silke Schmidt, will be in newspapers Sunday.
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WCIJ Report On Poisonous Water Wells
FREDERICA FREYBERG:
DRINKING WATER CONTAMINATION HAS RESIDENTS IN FLINT, MICHIGAN LIVING UNDER A WEEK-OLD FEDERAL EMERGENCY DECLARATION SIGNED BY PRESIDENT OBAMA. THE WATER PROBLEMS THERE, TWO YEARS IN THE MAKING, HAVE CREATED A TOXIC POLITICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL CHALLENGE FOR THAT STATE. WISCONSIN RESIDENTS MAY SEE THAT VIDEO AND BLOW A SIGH OF RELIEF, AT LEAST UNTIL SUNDAY. THAT’S WHEN A NEW REPORT SURFACES ON THE PRESENCE OF ARSENIC IN OUR OWN DRINKING WATER WELLS FROM THE WISCONSIN CENTER FOR INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM. SUNDAY’S STORY WAS WRITTEN BY SILKE SCHMID. RON SEELY IS PROJECT EDITOR. THANKS FOR BEING HERE.
RON SEELY:
PLEASED TO BE HERE.
FREDERICA FREYBERG:
WHERE IS ARSENIC THAT EXCEEDS SAFETY LEVELS MOST PREVALENT IN WISCONSIN?
RON SEELY:
IT CAN BE FOUND ALL OVER THE STATE, BUT THE BIGGEST AREAS — IN FACT, WE’VE TALKED TO EXPERTS WHO CALL IT A HOT SPOT — IS NORTHEASTERN WISCONSIN, AREAS UP AROUND GREEN BAY AND SO FORTH. BUT NUMBERS, STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT THERE ARE LEVELS OF ARSENIC FOUND ABOVE FEDERAL HEALTH STANDARDS IN WELLS IN 51 OF 72 COUNTIES.
FREDERICA FREYBERG:
AND WHAT ARE SOME OF THE HIGHEST KINDS OF LEVELS THAT YOU LOOK AT?
RON SEELY:
WELL, THE HIGHEST LEVEL THAT’S ON RECORD IS 15,000 PARTS PER BILLION, AND THAT IS — YOU KNOW, IT’S HUNDREDS AND HUNDREDS OF TIMES THE — OF — THE SAFE HEALTH STANDARD IS TEN PARTS PER BILLION, YOU KNOW. AND THE FELLOW WHO TESTED HIS WELL — IN FACT, I INTERVIEWED THIS GUY. IN HIS STOCK TANK THE WATER WAS TURNING ORANGE AND YELLOW AND GREEN, AND HE WAS SUSPICIOUS. HE TESTED HIS WELL AND THAT WAS THE RESULT. HE ENDED UP HAVING TO DRILL THE DEEPEST PRIVATE WELL IN THE HISTORY OF WISCONSIN TO GET BEYOND THE LEVEL — TO GET DOWN TO WHERE THERE WAS A SAFE LEVEL.
FREDERICA FREYBERG:
AND YET THIS ISN’T UNKNOWN TO PEOPLE WITH PRIVATE WELLS OR OFFICIALS.
RON SEELY:
NO. IN FACT, YOU KNOW, EXPERTS HAVE TOLD US THAT WISCONSIN IS ONE OF THE HOT SPOTS FOR ARSENIC. ARSENIC IS HIGH ON THE LIST OF CONTAMINANTS THAT WE HAVE TO DEAL WITH HERE.
FREDERICA FREYBERG:
SO WHAT ARE THE DANGERS OF DRINKING WATER WITH ARSENIC IN IT?
RON SEELY:
EVERYTHING FROM CANCERS AT CHRONIC EXPOSURE ABOVE THE SAFETY STANDARDS. WE’RE NOT TALKING A SINGLE GLASS OF WATER HERE OR DRINKING IT FOR A WEEK. BUT FOR LONG-TERM EXPOSURE, EVERYTHING FROM A NUMBER OF CANCERS TO NERVE DAMAGE TO DIABETES TO CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE.
FREDERICA FREYBERG:
HAS SOME OF THAT BEEN TRACED BACK TO SOME OF THE CONSUMPTION OF WATER IN WISCONSIN?
RON SEELY:
THERE HAVE BEEN STUDIES THAT HAVE LINKED THOSE. WE DIDN’T REPORT ON ANY SPECIFIC CASES IN WISCONSIN.
FREDERICA FREYBERG:
HOW DOES IT GET INTO THE WATER?
RON SEELY:
WELL, THAT’S AN IMPORTANT QUESTION, AND IT’S A QUESTION THAT — THE ANSWER LINKS WATER QUANTITY AND WATER QUALITY, TWO BIG ISSUES IN THE STATE. IF YOU PUMP AN AQUIFER OR THESE BIG, GIANT STORAGE AREAS BELOW GROUND, IF YOU PUMP THEM OF WATER AND THE WATER LEVELS DROP TOO MUCH, A CHEMICAL REACTION OCCURS. OXYGEN GETS INTO THE AQUIFER AND REPLACES THE WATER AND THAT INTERACTS WITH THE CHEMICAL THAT CAUSES ARSENIC TO BE PRESENT IN THE WATER. SO COMMUNITIES, MANY COMMUNITIES ARE PUMPING THEIR AQUIFERS. WAUKESHA IS TRYING TO HOOK TO MICHIGAN FOR WATER BECAUSE THEY PUMPED THEIR AQUIFER TOO LOW. GREEN BAY THE SAME WAY. IT’S IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE THE CONNECTION BETWEEN OUR WATER USE AND HOW MUCH WATER WE’RE USING AND THE FACT THAT THAT CAN RESULT IN CONTAMINANTS, THAT THERE’S CONNECTION WITH WATER QUALITY.
FREDERICA FREYBERG:
SO WE KNOW THAT THIS USE IS EXPANDING. WHAT SHOULD PEOPLE WHO HAVE PRIVATE WELLS AND ARE CONCERNED ABOUT ANY OF THESE KINDS OF CONTAMINANTS DO?
RON SEELY:
AWARENESS. THEY CAN’T ALWAYS RELY ON THE REGULATIONS BECAUSE THE ONLY TIME THEY’RE REQUIRED TO TEST — ARSENIC IS AMONG THE CONTAMINANTS THAT HAVE TO BE TESTED FOR WHEN A HOME CHANGES HANDS, BUT ONLY IF THE BUYER REQUESTS A WELL INSPECTION. OTHERWISE IT GOES UNTESTED FOR. THAT’S THE BIGGEST PROBLEM, AWARENESS. PEOPLE DON’T TEST THEIR PRIVATE WELLS. ONLY 16% OF THE PEOPLE IN THE STATE TEST THEIR PRIVATE WELLS. SO THERE ARE PEOPLE IN THE STATE, ESPECIALLY IN THE NORTHEAST AND IN THE EASTERN PART OF THE STATE, WHO MAY BE EXPOSED TO ARSENIC AT UNSAFE LEVELS AND NOT BE AWARE OF IT.
FREDERICA FREYBERG:
WE WANT TO FORWARD PROMOTE JUST A LITTLE BIT. WE KNOW YOUR REPORTING CONTINUES A WEEK FROM SUNDAY LOOKING AT LEAD IN THE STATE OF WISCONSIN.
RON SEELY:
YEAH. WE’RE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT LEAD LINES, LEAD PIPES THROUGHOUT THE STATE, ESPECIALLY IN MILWAUKEE. WE’LL BE HAVING A NUMBER OF OTHER STORIES THAT APPEAR AS PART OF THIS SERIES THAT WE WORK WITH THE JOURNALISM SCHOOL ON, AN INVESTIGATIVE CLASS. AND IT IS A LONG-TERM PROJECT THAT WE’RE REALLY PROUD OF, ESPECIALLY WITH THIS FLINT STORY. WE FEEL WE’VE REALLY TAPPED INTO SOMETHING HERE. AND YOU CAN GO TO WISCONSINWATCH.ORG AND ALL OF THE STORIES ARE ARCHIVED, INCLUDING THE FIRST STORY THAT WE RAN THAT WAS A BROAD LOOK AT THESE CONTAMINANTS.
FREDERICA FREYBERG:
VERY VALUABLE. THANKS VERY MUCH.
RON SEELY:
THANKS FOR HAVING ME.
FREDERICA FREYBERG:
LOOK FOR THE WISCONSIN CENTER FOR INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM’S REPORT ON ARSENIC IN WISCONSIN WATER IN NEWSPAPERS STATEWIDE ON SUNDAY.
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