Last week, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources sent us a letter on the work being done to provide a long-term, safe and reliable water supply to residents in the study area. In the letter, they write the following:
The DNR supports supplying drinking water via a public water system to all current and future affected properties within the defined scope and extent of the contamination. It is the DNR’s position that a public (municipal) water source offers the best regulated, safest, and most reliable drinking water for consumers, current and future.
DNR continues to have concerns about Alternative 4, Private Special Casing Deep Water Supply Wells, particularly with respect to the long-term effectiveness and implementability, which are two key evaluation criteria required in Wis. Admin. Code ch. NR 722, as noted below.
We agree with the DNR that the drilling of deeper wells is not a good solution. We believe that a municipal water supply from the City of Marinette is the best solution. The City of Peshtigo is not the best option. It would require the laying of at least an additional five miles of pipe, which would need to cross several miles of town roads, county roads and possibly state roads, a railroad and wetlands. The additional permitting, design and access approvals would add years to the project.
Of course, as we have previously said, we do not support any solution that annexes Township residents in the study area.
We will continue our discussions with community leaders and residents in the study area. Our goal is to move as swiftly as possible and we will continue to share details about the design and engineering efforts.
