Here & Now

Sen. Mary Felzkowski on PFAS in Stella's Drinking Water

Frederica Freyberg:

With the unprecedented projected budget surplus, the jockeying is underway for how much of it to spend funding critical needs. Among them, cleaning up forever chemicals or PFAS contamination across Wisconsin. Including in the tiny town of Stella near Rhinelander where residents are now supplied bottled water because testing of private wells found sky high levels of the dangerous PFAS. The worse contamination in Wisconsin. The Republican state senator whose district includes Stella says some of the surplus could be used for remediation. Mary Felzkowski is also a member of the powerful budget writing Joint Finance Committee. We talked with her at her Capitol office. First, I do want to say thanks very much for doing this with us.

Mary Felzkowski:

You’re very welcome.

Frederica Freyberg:

So you have said that PFAS contamination and mitigation is not a partisan issue. It certainly seems to have been in the recent past but what has changed now?

Mary Felzkowski:

I would disagree it’s been a partisan issue. I think there’s been maybe some differences of opinions between the different parties on where the levels should be set. Whether it’s 20 parts per trillion, 70 parts per trillion. Canada was at one time at 120 parts per trillion. And I think the Republicans’ stance on this is let’s not get ahead of technology. You can set a PFAS level very, very low but if we don’t have the technology to get there, why would we do that?

Frederica Freyberg:

Do you feel as though we have more time when we’re dealing with these forever chemicals?

Mary Felzkowski:

We don’t have any time when we’re talking about people’s health but we have to be realistic. Technology is moving at an accelerated rate and we need to make sure the levels that we’re setting are attainable levels.

Frederica Freyberg:

Do you have any idea what level you would think it should be?

Mary Felzkowski:

So I’ve heard – when you talk to EPA, at first it was – they were at 70 parts per trillion and I know Wisconsin DNR was pushing for levels at 20 parts per trillion. It is my understanding that EPA is now moving towards that 20 parts per trillion also.

Frederica Freyberg:

Meanwhile in the town of Stella, residents with their private wells are seeing the highest levels of these forever chemicals anywhere across the state and what is it, 50 households are now being given drinking water. What is your message to these people in your district?

Mary Felzkowski:

I went to the hearing in Stella when they had a public hearing on it and the DNR was there. Department of Health was there and some of the wells are coming in at 46,000 parts per trillion. The saddest part about this is we don’t know where it’s coming from yet but PFAS has a fingerprint so when they can start testing these chemicals, it will have a distinct fingerprint, so to speak and I know this is not a real good scientific explanation but they will be able to trace it back to its source. I think right now, I think what we’re doing as far as making sure they have clean drinking water, I can’t imagine being one of the people in the town of Stella because this is not only your life but now we have a decrease in property values. Everything there is — and with no answers.

Frederica Freyberg:

Can you tell the people in Stella and elsewhere across the state that the calvary is now coming because budget writers will be able to work with a more than $7 billion surplus to address PFAS contamination?

Mary Felzkowski:

So the $7 billion surplus, we’re going to pause on that. $4.5 billion of that is one-time money. It’s not forever money. It’s not like we’re going to see that surplus year over year over year. Fiscal Bureau estimates the surplus that will be a continuing surplus is about $2.9 billion. So the large portion of the surplus is one-time money but in my world, one-time money — this would be a great start for one-time money. I support the governor putting $100 million in there but I would also like to look at the programs. When he talks about his Well Compensation Fund and that might not be structured perfectly for the people that are dealing with PFAS. We need a lot more knowledge on where did it come from and then how do we clean it up.

Frederica Freyberg:

Do you believe the Republican majority and budget writers will also say that they like the $100 million the governor is talking about?

Mary Felzkowski:

We haven’t had those conversations yet so I can’t really say but I know my colleagues are very concerned with this and that we will address it. I can’t speak for everyone else about the level of commitment on that.

Frederica Freyberg:

Why shouldn’t businesses that caused this contamination have to pay for the remediation?

Mary Felzkowski:

I do believe that any type of remediation will be a public-private partnership but we have a chemical that was developed, studied by the FDA and the EPA and given a stamp of approval by the government that said this is a good chemical, go ahead and use it. We use it in medical devices. We use it in food. We use it in water-proofing our clothing. We use it in firefighting foam. The Rhinelander airport is being sued right now because they’re saying they are one of the contributors to the PFAS contamination. Yes, they are but they were mandated by the FAA to utilize it and have it on hand. So are we really going to bankrupt a company that was using a government-approved chemical and told that it’s safe to use? If we do that, I think they can be part of the solution but I don’t think they’re the sole solution. Tough questions.

Frederica Freyberg:

With that tough question, we need to leave it, senator, thanks very much.

Mary Felzkowski:

You bet. Thank you for having me.