Announcer:

The following program is a PBS Wisconsin original production.

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani:

I need to do something with this anger. And I knew I wanted to do something to help.

Frederica Freyberg:

This week, a Wisconsin woman finds a unique way to aid her homeland. Plus, Tommy Thompson leaves the UW System. We get his take on everything from the Republican legislature to his future in politics. And two companies stand accused of polluting soil, groundwater and air around Marinette.

I’m Frederica Freyberg. Those stories this week on “Here & Now,” along with a ruling regarding Republican electors who certified a Donald Trump win in Wisconsin. It’s “Here & Now” for March 18.

Announcer:

Funding for “Here & Now” is provided by the Focus Fund for Journalism. And Friends of PBS Wisconsin.

Frederica Freyberg:

Declaring two companies that discharge cancer-causing chemicals into the air and water failed to report it between 2013 and 2016 and failed to clean it up, this week the Wisconsin Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Johnson Controls and Tyco. The DOJ seeks monetary penalties over PFAS contamination at the company’s firefighting foam test site in Marinette. PFAS are a group of chemicals that have been used for decades in products like non-stick cookware, fast food wrappers, stain-resistant sprays and certain types of firefighting foams. According to the complaint, Johnson Controls Incorporated and Tyco violated the state spills law when they failed to notify the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources of a PFAS discharge and failed to remediate PFAS contamination at and around the Fire Technology Center in Marinette, Wisconsin. For its part, Tyco released a statement to Wisconsin Public Radio saying, “We stand behind the years of work and considerable resources we have invested in investigating and remediating PFAS related to historic operations at our Fire Technology Center in Marinette.”

Jeff Lamont:

This is my home here, and I’m in the center of the plume. I have issues with my water. They were contaminated, this home is contaminated. These people are contaminated.

Frederica Freyberg:

In 2013, Tyco became aware of PFAS on their property, at their fire training facility where they used firefighting foams that contained the forever chemical.

Jeff Lamont:

Once they do their training, they hose all the foam down into the adjacent ditches and the ditches carry it into the lake.

Frederica Freyberg:

The man in that video from a report we did in 2019 is our next guest. Jeff Lamont is a retired hydrologist and personal expert in this PFAS contamination. He joins us now from just outside Marinette in the Town of Peshtigo. Jeff, thanks a lot for being here.

Jeff Lamont:

Thank you. And I appreciate the time.

Frederica Freyberg:

Do you still have contaminated water where you are?

Jeff Lamont:

I do. Some of the highest contamination. I’m in the center of the plume. So my home has well over close to 140 or 150 parts per trillion.

Frederica Freyberg:

And so you’re drinking bottled water, of course?

Jeff Lamont:

Yes, for the last almost 4 1/2 years now.

Frederica Freyberg:

Were you part of last year’s settlement with Tyco to some 270 households?

Jeff Lamont:

Yes, I am part of that settlement. Although nothing has been paid out to date at this point.

Frederica Freyberg:

Was it validating for the families included to be part of that?

Jeff Lamont:

Uh, somewhat. Kind of a double-edged sword in that the amount of money that was appropriated and deemed reasonable by the judge, once you take away the attorneys’ fees, leaves about $12 million for those 200-plus homes and, you know, I got to meet one of the gentlemen that ended up a young man with testicular cancer in our area, and so, you know, I’m not sure how you put a value on that, $12 million for 270 households.

Frederica Freyberg:

And it’s supposed to presumably go to maybe replacing your well?

Jeff Lamont:

It could be used in that. They’re pushing new deep wells in this area, which was an option that was really never condoned or blessed by the Department of Natural Resources because you could just end up pulling the contamination deeper. So what do you do then?

Frederica Freyberg:

What’s your reaction, then, to the DOJ lawsuit against Tyco and Johnson Controls?

Jeff Lamont:

It’s very validating for us. I mean, we — I was one of three people that actually met with Attorney General Josh Kaul and Robert Bilott, one of the attorneys that was involved in the DuPont settlement in Parkersburg, West Virginia.

Frederica Freyberg:

As we’ve reported, Tyco has done some remediation around the site and they mentioned that in their statement. Has that resulted in good clean-up there?

Jeff Lamont:

No, not yet. It was only what I would call two interim measures so far. So they put — they’re treating surface water from two ditches that leave the property, and one of them was only cleaning up 25% of the flow in that creek. And those concentrations were in the thousands parts per trillion and are discharging directly to Green Bay of Lake Michigan. And I think this spring they’re doing a small soil removal, and they started the construction of a long-term groundwater extraction system. But over a 50-year period, that only cleans up a portion of it. So this is a decades-long generational issue that will be with us for a long, long time.

Frederica Freyberg:

The federal infrastructure spending that is supposed to be sending tens of millions of dollars our way to try to clean this up across the state, I imagine it feels like a tiny drop in the bucket, but it’s something, right?

Jeff Lamont:

Oh, it is. And you know, some of those funds, we lobbied very heavily with Senator Baldwin’s office and have been very involved with them over the last four years about this. She came to visit our town. She actually faced some of the Tyco executives and more or less shamed them.

Frederica Freyberg:

With about a minute left, the DNR board adopted limits for PFAS in drinking and surface water last month but not for groundwater, citing a concern over the cost to remediate private wells. What’s your reaction to this?

Jeff Lamont:

Well, I actually testified at that meeting, and I participated in it for most of the day. Frankly, when they came back and started the votes, it was a three-ring circus. You had the secretary of the DNR yelling at the board members because the board members said they couldn’t believe the Department of Health’s numbers. And it just felt very scripted. Three of these people that were Governor Walker appointees, it seemed very obvious, had been involved with the lobbyists on this. And one of the gentlemen decided to abstain, he wouldn’t say why he abstained but that went to a 3-3 tie, and that’s why there was no standards set for groundwater, which a third of the people in Wisconsin rely on.

Frederica Freyberg:

We need to leave it there, Jeff Lamont. Thanks very much, and good luck.

Jeff Lamont:

Thank you.

Frederica Freyberg:

As to federal infrastructure funding coming into Wisconsin, nearly $143 million will go toward water projects in 2022. The money will be made available from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in loan programs to fund water infrastructure improvements. The funding includes a minimum of $95 million in grants to address PFAS with the findings that more than 50 communities in Wisconsin, like Peshtigo, have been found to have the forever chemicals in their drinking water.

On the war front, it has been three weeks since the Russians invaded Ukraine. The personal stories of brutality and survival get worse as the onslaught continues. The death toll for civilians is rising. It can be heartbreaking to watch, especially for one Door County family with deep Ukrainian roots. As Marisa Wojcik shows us, they are heart broken, but not helpless.

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani:

I remember I was sitting and watching the news two weeks ago, and I was so mad, I was hurt. I was upset. I was feeling helpless.

Marisa Wojcik:

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani wanted to take action as she saw images of Russian forces brutally attack Ukraine and its people.

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani:

I was talking to my family. I was like, I need to do something with this anger.

Marisa Wojcik:

As a second generation Ukrainian, her mission was personal.

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani:

I knew I wanted to do something to help so I figured, well, I know how to make candles. We have a candle company. Let’s use this.

Marisa Wojcik:

Owner of a small artisan shop called Door County Candle Company, she began making candles with blue and yellow wax, the colors of the Ukrainian flag.

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani:

So I wrote a post on Facebook and I was like, I just did a little preview that I’m going to be launching a fundraiser tomorrow, stay tuned. Woke up and we’re like, “Oh, my god, a thousand, okay, 2,000, okay, 3.”

Marisa Wojcik:

The orders have now reached 20,000.

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani:

That’s like what we typically would sell in a year.

Marisa Wojcik:

20,000 candles that are made by hand, in this small shop in Sturgeon Bay.

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani:

I think I cry every day just hearing, like, the stories and I could cry now. It means so much, and it means that so many people want to help, and so many people were feeling helpless and just didn’t know how to help.

Marisa Wojcik:

Moved by the news and Christiana’s energy, volunteers in the community have turned out in support, including the shop’s founder, who sold the business to Christiana just last summer.

Mike Felhofer:

We saw she had sold 3,000 candles in a day. I said, “Well, I think they’re going to need a little help.”

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani:

He was like, “Can I help?” I’m like, “Yes, when can you be here?” He’s like, “I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

Mike Felhofer:

Been here ever since and that was a couple of weeks ago.

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani:

He’s indefinitely out of retirement for now.

Mike Felhofer:

I’ve never experienced anything quite like this. I’ve made a lot of candles in my day, but never anything like this.

Marisa Wojcik:

To handle the new volume of orders, Mike is helping implement new ways to streamline the labor and time-intensive process.

Mike Felhofer:

I find it heartwarming, the degree of support that we’ve gotten. It’s amazing. I’ve seen a lot of good things in this community, but this type of support has been just utterly amazing.

Marisa Wojcik:

This project means a lot to another volunteer: Christiana’s father.

George Gorchynsky:

I have to be here. I have to help.

Marisa Wojcik:

When he’s not doing 12-hour shifts as an ER physician, he’s doing 12-hour shifts helping his daughter.

George Gorchynsky:

I’m first generation Ukrainian. My parents emigrated from Ukraine right after World War II. I was raised Ukrainian. In fact, I spoke Ukrainian until first grade.

Marisa Wojcik:

He and Christiana’s mother passed the language on to their children.

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani:

It was my language. I learned Ukrainian before I learned English and that’s how I talk to my grandparents, only in Ukrainian. It’s kept me really close to my culture and my heritage.

Marisa Wojcik:

Christiana’s maternal grandmother took the news of the Russian invasion hard.

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani:

My grandma was born in Ukraine so she is the only grandparent of mine left. We were sitting with her, and she just started to cry and shake and just relive war when she was a kid. I never thought that something like that could happen in 2022.

George Gorchynsky:

It’s just heartbreaking. It’s an absolute catastrophe what’s going on. It’s World War II all over again. That’s what it is. And in fact, my wife’s mom has memories of, you know, things that happened during the war and as a child when she was there. And it’s just brought tears to her eyes. She’s in total disbelief. She’s at home right now here, and she’s stickering bags and doing things. She’s 82 years old and she’s helping out as well. So it’s all hands on deck.

Marisa Wojcik:

All of the profits made from selling the Ukraine candle are being donated to a Ukrainian non-profit.

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani:

It’s called RAZOM for Ukraine. So it’s helping provide bandages, tourniquets and medical supplies to those that are in Ukraine and need it most. Our first donation was on Monday for $125,000. A lot of tears were flowing after that. It was just incredible. That’s the first of many donation installments that we’re going to make.

Marisa Wojcik:

At the onset of the project, Christiana’s goals were modest.

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani:

I really thought we’d only sell like 100. I really didn’t think we’d sell more.

George Gorchynsky:

We still laugh when Christiana said, “You know, if I could sell 300 candles, I’d be so happy.” Well, that ship has sailed.

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani:

Good job!

Mike Felhofer:

I couldn’t be more proud of her if she were my own daughter. I’ve mentored her, but now she’s taking this to another level. I’ll tell her she’s got a tiger by the tail. Now she has to figure out how to bring that under control and I’m here to help however I can.

George Gorchynsky:

We’re so proud of her. We never expected this kind of a response. Never. A lot of good comes out of evil, in many ways.

Christiana Gorchynsky Trapani:

Just saying we’re standing with Ukraine and providing light in the darkness. Slava, Ukraini.

George Gorchynsky:

Slava Ukraini. Heroyam slava. Glory to Ukraine. Glory to its heroes.

Marisa Wojcik:

For “Here & Now,” I’m Marisa Wojcik in Door County.

Frederica Freyberg:

This week, former governor Tommy Thompson steps down as UW System president. When he accepted the position in July 2020, Thompson said he did so knowing two things: that he was needed, and that it would be temporary. I sat down with Tommy Thompson this week to get his take on the state of the UW System and his own political future. We should note, PBS Wisconsin is part of the UW. So as you leave your service as president of the UW System, what would you say has been your most significant contribution?

Tommy Thompson:

I think opening up the university. When I came in, Frederica, in July of 2020, you know, the university was in financial trouble. A lot of campuses were in real financial trouble. They didn’t know if they were going to be able to open up in fall, and they didn’t know how to open up. I came in, had a two-hour meeting with the chancellors and at the end of the two-hour meeting, I asked them what their decision was. Their decision was they wanted another meeting. I said, “No. I’m making a decision. We’re opening up September 3rd.” About one-third were with me, one-third was opposed, one-third was — didn’t — mach nicht. So we opened it up and then I knew I had to make sure that it was safe. And in order to be safe, we had to wear masks, and had to inculcate a cultural responsibility with the students. The students were fantastic. The faculty was fantastic. So we opened up, and then we decided we needed a testing program. Testing program was one of the best if not the best in the country, and the federal government got wind of it and they came out here and they asked if I could expand it into the community. So I said sure, if you give us the money. They gave us up to $50 million to set it up. So we became the problem solvers. And then we opened up and then we had a shortage of nurses, and I asked the nursing deans if we could use their students to help test and help vaccinate, and they jumped at it, you know, tremendous support. And so we got these young nurses that are students go out and help do the vaccination and the testing and the enrolling of people. It was fantastic. It was a partnership from students all the way up through the faculty up through the central administration here in Van Hise. It was wonderful. And that was a great accomplishment.

Frederica Freyberg:

In the midst of some of that, you stood up to Republican lawmakers who wanted to have you get their permission to implement some of these COVID policies. Why did you stand up that way?

Tommy Thompson:

Well, because I had to. I mean, my job was to open the university and keep it open. If I had to go and get permission from the legislature to do it, I couldn’t move fast enough. Secondly, they wanted me to not have a masking policy. If I didn’t have a masking policy, the professors were not going to teach. The professors don’t teach, I don’t have classes, I don’t have the universities open. So I had to make sure that I kept the university open. I had to stand up to the legislature and tell them, please, understand, we’re running this university. We’re going to run it and we’re going to keep it open. That’s my pledge, and that’s what I did. And in order for me to accomplish that, I couldn’t go by and start passing rules that they could suspend, because I knew if they did the suspension on the masking, professors wouldn’t have taught and we would not have had the universities open. So it was a simple decision for me. I stood up, got some criticism, but I got also a lot of support.

Frederica Freyberg:

In your mind, how has the legislature and its budget-writers treated the UW?

Tommy Thompson:

Not as good as they should. And I had to tell them, you know, you’ve got to support the university, because that’s where the solutions to our problems are. When you got a shortage of nurses, shortage of engineers, shortage of teachers, which we have in this state, who’s going to turn them out? It’s the university. So give us the dollars necessary to do it. They were not good for us in the budget, but this part of the session, the second part, in January, they’ve been very good to us. Very cooperative, very supportive. And I think that trend is going to come and I think I helped foster that trend.

Frederica Freyberg:

So what is your forecast for the health of the UW System, given enrollment and budget?

Tommy Thompson:

Enrollment is a big problem. And it’s not only the fact that our population has not grown as rapidly. I think we’re 27th in the country, but it’s also the fact that parents aren’t having as many children, therefore, we’re not graduating as many. And the bigger problem, Frederica, is this, that when you and I, when I went and you, about 35% of the students were going on to college. 33 to 35%. That’s fallen down to 27%. And that’s on its way to 25%. So you’ve got a declining population, a percentage decline of those students that are going on to school, and all this indicates to me, we have a huge enrollment problem staring us right in the face. So we’ve got to do a much better job of getting first-generation families, more diversity in our campuses, and more students, and we’ve got to do some more speaking about why the university is so important. You know, you went to the university. All your camera people went to the university. We’ve got to get that back to the young people. University education is extremely important. And if we’re going to solve the problems of Wisconsin, we need a strong university system, and we are the problem solvers for the state of Wisconsin.

Frederica Freyberg:

What is your advice to the incoming president?

Tommy Thompson:

I am telling him to be strong, be forceful, and do not be afraid to get out and brag about this university, and all of his speeches, wherever they may be and however big or small the audience is, talk about the importance of a university degree. I do that all over. It’s important for people to realize that this is an investment in your sons’ and daughters’ future, and it’s an investment by the state of Wisconsin to solve the problems and make Wisconsin stronger. We are the economic engine and we’ve got to say that. Here are the problems. It’s not only enrollment. It’s the fact we have too many buildings. We need to have a blue-ribbon task force, which is not going to come until after the election. We’ve got to do a better job of advertising our university system, especially in distance learning. We’re way behind the Purdues and the western governors and Arizona State and the University of Southern New Hampshire. University of Southern New Hampshire is spending $100 million on publicity, a lot of it in Wisconsin, taking our students out there. These are problems that we’ve got to solve.

Frederica Freyberg:

I want to ask you whether or not you do, in fact, want to get back in the game, and run for governor.

Tommy Thompson:

That’s going to be in April. I’ll make that decision and I’m going to look at it, Frederica. I’m going to look at — you know, I’m going to wait and see what people want me to do. You know, my family, my friends. There’re some businesses I’m sure are out there that would like to have me either on their board or in some sort of a consultant capacity. I’m waiting to see what’s available, and what I should do. I’ve never taken the time, Frederica, in all my life, you know, what’s good for tommy, what should he do, and really think about it. I’ve always jumped into something before I really thought it through, and I’m going to spend the month of April skiing, going to Florida, and talking to people like you that have been friends of mine for a long time as to what they think I should do.

Frederica Freyberg:

What draws you toward that, though? What draws you toward more service?

Tommy Thompson:

Public service. 50 years. I was state legislator for 20 years. I was governor for over 14 years. I was in the cabinet for four years. And I was — excuse me. I was president here, the eighth president of the university for almost two years. That’s a long time. And over 40-some years, I’ve been in the public arena. It’s hard to change. It’s hard to say, you know, I don’t get up in the morning and read the newspapers, hear the news, and listen to you on television and so on. I’m — I love to serve. I’m an individual that believes in civic service and everything I’ve done is, how do I make Wisconsin, make Wisconsin better? How do I make it stronger? How do I make this university, you know, respond to the needs of the young students? That’s why we have these universities for, for our students. How do we build that? You know, that’s a clock inside of me that goes off every hour, as to how do I serve and make things better. I hate the status quo. I’ve always been one of those individuals, if you believe in the status quo, you go backwards. And I want to move forward. I’m always looking forward. How do I advance Wisconsin? How do I make Wisconsin better? How did I make the Health and Human Services Department better when I was there? And if I don’t leave it better at the end, when I leave, I have really wasted my time. Every place I’ve gone, I can look back and say, I’ve improved. Whether it was in the legislature, whether it was governor, whether it was secretary, or now as university president. I can look back and, in my mind, in my opinion, I have made it stronger and better, more efficient, and that, to me, drives me, and that’s why — you asked me why? It drives me, something inside of me that I’ve always been attracted to.

Frederica Freyberg:

Tommy Thompson, thanks very much.

Tommy Thompson:

You’re wonderful. Thank you.

Frederica Freyberg:

In election news related to 2020, the state elections commission this week dismissed a complaint filed over Republican electors who certified to the U.S. Senate that Donald Trump won Wisconsin. The WEC ruled the Republican electors did not act illegally but were legitimately trying to preserve Trump’s legal standing.

Also this week, Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos again rejected calls to decertify President Joe Biden’s win in Wisconsin after meeting privately Wednesday with advocates for such decertification.

Robin Vos:

There are some people who think the legislature has the unilateral ability to overturn the election. We do not. Constitutional scholars like Rick Esenberg, Jim Troupis, Donald Trump’s own attorney in Wisconsin said we do not have that power. I still believe that today.

Frederica Freyberg:

Hearings for Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson’s nomination begin next week at the U.S. Capitol. PBS Wisconsin will broadcast those hearings on the Wisconsin Channel starting Monday at 10:00 a.m. and at 9:00 on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings. The PBS NewsHour special report will provide live coverage of the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing.

For continuing coverage on that story and news from across the state, check out the PBSwisconsin.org. Thank you for watching “Here & Now.” I’m Frederica Freyberg.

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Funding for “Here & Now” is provided by the Focus Fund for Journalism and Friends of PBS Wisconsin.