Clean Water Updates
Short posts on current issues, updated as necessary to keep our readers informed.
Posted March 3, 2026- Trout Unlimited call for an increase in trout stamp fees to keep up with rampant inflation in the U.S.
You don't have to be a fisherman to understand how important maintaining cold-water streams is to our environment. Wisconsin offers top-tier trout fishing with over 13,000 miles of streams, featuring world-class, cold-water fishing. Many of those cold-water streams are located right here in our Northwoods. Oneida County specifically has an abundance of trout streams as shown in this DNR map
p.widencdn.net/a3vn2f/Trout_Oneida_color_landscape .
With the Wisconsin Trout Stamp fee remaining stagnant for the last twenty years, it is failing to keep up with inflation that has caused trout habitat project costs to soar. With that in mind, Trout Unlimited (TU) is asking for the public to ask for an increase in Trout Stamp fees.
TU quote: "By adjusting the Inland Trout Stamp for inflation, we can continue to make the necessary investments to ensure future generations can enjoy the cold, clean water that is essential to the way of life for Wisconsinites."
From the Trout Unlimited Facebook page
Breaking News in the Wisconsin Trout world - today (Mon. March 2, 2026), Rep. Duke Tucker and Sen. Rachael Cabral-Guevara introduced legislation that would adjust Wisconsin’s Inland Trout Stamp $6 (from $10 to $16)!
All of these funds go right back into making our Coldwater resources better through trout habitat improvement projects and trout management.
Help us build momentum for this historic investment by contacting your state legislators and asking them to Co-Sponsor the legislation.
Our IG friends can use the link in our bio.
https://www.votervoice.net/TU/campaigns/134822/respond
Visit the Trout Unlimited website at: Take Action - Trout Unlimited
Posted February 28, 2026- Despite 93% public support for Knowles Nelson Program, legislature so far has failed to provide renewed funding with time running out.
What is it with the Wisconsin Legislature? Two incredibly important environmental issues, meaningful waveboat legislation and Knowles Nelson funding both overwhelmingly supported by the public can't seem to get any love.
With meaningful waveboat legislation dead in the water for 2026 and Knowles Nelson funding on life support, frustration is building with apathetic politicians.
The latest update from Team Knowles Nelson Knowles-Nelson stuck after a frustrating week in the Capitol – Knowles Nelson Stewardship provides some clarity about the painful process with the quote below.
"The Senate pulled its own reauthorization bill after failing to secure votes. Meanwhile, compromise remains on the table.
This week we were supposed to see a Knowles-Nelson compromise bill pass out of the Senate. Instead, Republicans doubled down on partisanship. Democrats reiterated their desire for compromise and declined to support a bill that is Knowles-Nelson in name only. Wisconsin is now left without funding for conservation.
And as of today, the program appears headed for a lapse in funding, even though the way forward is painfully clear."
Posted February 28, 2026- OCCWA invited to WJFW's Up North @ 4 to give an update on current issues.
With multiple issues on the front burner, our friends at WJFW offered to have OCCWA appear on the February 27th Up North @ 4 show. With Kathleen Cooper and Eric Rempala determined to discuss as many issues as possible, things went a little off the rails in a fun way.
Waveboat legislation was as the subject in the first half of the appearance. Coming out of break host Dan Hagan asked if Kathleen and Eric wanted to move on to other issues or get feisty on waveboat legislation. Well, to find out the answer you can view appearance at Up North @ 4 | | wjfw.com the OCCWA portion starts at approximately the 12-minute mark.
As always, we at OCCWA are grateful to WJFW for allowing us to share our Clean Water Updates. Thank you to Dan, Agnes and Lily!
Posted February 26, 2026- OCCWA's Tom Wiensch appeared on WJFW's February 25th evening news discussing the latest changes to the Clean Water Act.
In the two-and-a-half-minute clip Proposed changes to the Clean Water Act could end federal protection for most of Wisconsin's wetlands | | wjfw.com WJFW's Ethan Krinke interviews Tom about the latest changes to the Clean Water Act and the effects it may have on Wisconsin waters.
Congratulations to Tom on a fine job and thanks to WJFW and Ethan Krinke for covering environmental issues in our great state. For Tom's full OCCWA article addressing the changes to the Clean Water Act, simply go to our homepage to view his February 6th post.
Posted January 23, 2026- With Wisconsin dodging a legislative waveboat bullet, Wisconsin Lakes at Stake provides a synopsis of a failed attempt to push a "Bad Bill" bill through the legislature.
Lakes at Stake Wisconsin provided their latest newsletter covering the failed attempt by the legislature to create a waveboat bill. Lakes at Stake is a leading member of a coalition of nearly 90 Wisconsin organizations promoting responsible wakeboating in our state. Oneida County Clean Waters Action and Oneida County Lakes and Rivers Association are two of the 90 participating coalition members.
The newsletter, The Tsunami has Passed - For Now is a well written and accurate account of the questionable legislative process from the start to its uncompleted finish and where it goes from here.
Posted January 23, 2026- Beckie Gaskill provides the latest on the Wisconsin DNR's Fiscal Year 26-27 Biennial Habitat Work Plan. (Photo Credit Wisconsin DNR)
An article on Beckie's "Midwest Conservation" Substack page Wisconsin’s Habitat To-Do List Is Massive, and the Clock Is Ticking covers one of the most important conservation roadmaps Wisconsin produces. Beckie touches on why the work plan is so important and what you can do to support and influence their plan on the local level.
As you may already know Beckie is an occasional content contributor to OCCWA but also, she is a freelance environmental and outdoor journalist and content creator as well as a Master Naturalist. Beckie is a Top 50 Substack author in environment and climate reporting. In a dearth of Northwood environmental reporting, Beckie is a breath of fresh air.
Posted January 20, 2026- We have the latest updated DNR Expanded PFAS testing numbers for Oneida County.
Below is the exact language from the DNR/Stella website PFAS Contamination in the Town of Stella and Oneida County | | Wisconsin DNR
As an expansion of a previous private well sampling project in the Town of Stella, the DNR and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are offering free PFAS sampling in private wells to some communities within Oneida County. The cost-free sampling is available to full-time and seasonal residents who receive a letter of eligibility from the DNR. This sampling is offered to a targeted number of private drinking water wells in four general locations around Oneida County in the townships of Crescent, Newbold, Pelican, Sugar Camp and Pine Lake. Those who choose to participate in this sampling effort will receive their private well's sample results and any recommendations from the DNR.
Eligibility letters will be sent to homeowners in batches to accommodate laboratory capacity. Therefore, not all residences will receive notification of sampling availability at the same time. Well owners can submit questions to DNRDGOneidaCountyPFAS@wisconsin.gov or 888-626-0605.
Expanded Oneida County Private Well PFAS Sampling Results
As of February 6, 2026, the DNR had received sampling results for 138 private wells.
Overall Summary: 138 Private Well Sampling Results
- 20 PFAS detected greater than DHS' drinking water health advisory levels
- 34 PFAS detected less than DHS' drinking water health advisory levels
- 84 No PFAS detected
Town of Crescent-South: 44 private well sampling results
- 10 PFAS detected greater than DHS' drinking water health advisory levels
- 17 PFAS detected less than DHS' drinking water health advisory levels
- 17 No PFAS detected
Town of Crescent-North: 12 private well sampling results
- 2 PFAS detected greater than DHS' drinking water health advisory levels
- 1 PFAS detected less than DHS' drinking water health advisory levels
- 9 No PFAS detected
Town of Newbold: 23 private well sampling results
- 3 PFAS detected greater than DHS' drinking water health advisory levels
- 4 PFAS detected below DHS' drinking water health advisory levels
- 16 No PFAS detected
Town of Pelican: 8 private well sampling results
- 8 No PFAS detected
Town of Pine Lake: 15 private well sampling results
- 3 PFAS detected greater than DHS' drinking water health advisory levels
- 5 PFAS detected below DHS' drinking water health advisory levels
- 7 No PFAS detected
Town of Stella: 14 private well sampling results
- 1 PFAS detected greater than DHS' drinking water health advisory levels
- 4 PFAS detected below DHS' drinking water health advisory levels
- 9 No PFAS detected
Town of Sugar Camp: 22 private well sampling results
- 1 PFAS detected greater than DHS' drinking water health advisory levels
- 3 PFAS detected below DHS' drinking water advisory levels
- 18 No PFAS detected
Posted February 2, 2026- Associated Press article on PFAS contamination in the U.S. chooses Town of Stella as main focus.
In a February 2nd Associated Press (AP) article Water well owners often last to know about forever chemical contamination | AP News the town of Stella winds up being the main focus of a country wide PFAS problem. Giving credit where credit is due, AP did an exceptionally accurate job of covering a small-town story that deserves National attention.
The AP article relates how the Stella contamination was found by random sampling across Wisconsin by the DNR. The random sampling consisted of 450 tests across the entire state. The odds that the Stella contamination was even discovered were not good, which is an example of how little the state invests in private well owners.
There is however a current effort by Wisconsin Conservation Voters (WCV) to ad legislation that would protect private well owners’ right to know if their water is contaminated. Unlike Wisconsinites on municipal water systems who get annual notifications about their water quality, private well owners are rarely notified when local ground or surface water is contaminated. To learn more about this potential legislation and take action visit: Private well owners have a right to know… | conservationvoters.org
Posted January 27, 2026- Wisconsin Conservation Voters (WCV) travels north to produce storytelling video of Stella PFAS contamination.
If you visit our PFAS Contamination tab, you will find a July 17th article about an independent statewide PFAS coalition that OCCWA participates in. The coalition is comprised of communities affected by PFAS and environmental non-profits both large and small. While OCCWA falls under the small non-profit category, larger non-profits such as Wisconsin Conservation Voters fall under the large category. These larger non-profits are also known as non-governmental organizations (NGO). An excerpt from our July article names some of these NGOs and their value to the PFAS coalition.
"The most prominent NGOs involved in this PFAS coalition are Wisconsin Conservation Voters, Midwest Environmental Advocates, Wisconsin's Greenfire, River Alliance of Wisconsin, and the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin. These groups provide so much to organizations such as us at OCCWA, but also to affected communities like Stella, Marinette, French Island, Madison and Milwaukee.
These NGOs with financial resources from donors provide environmental studies and help organize and educate citizens and lesser funded local groups. They employ lawyers to help understand legal issues including state legislation. They also lobby in Madison emphasizing environmental issues. Remember, Industries spend millions lobbying on their behalf, but who's there for the little guy? Though many expect our elected officials to represent our concerns in Madison, too often poor public canvasing and partisan politics get in the way. NGOs provide expertise on specific issues and are another path to educate and influence decisionmakers in the state. This kind of work is not financially possible for small groups such as OCCWA"
As stated, larger non-profits can do more things that smaller non-profits can't. To that point Wisconsin Conservation Voters showed up in the town of Stella to produce a storytelling video about the towns plight. The 6-minute video can be viewed at Stella, Wisconsin | PFAS contamination in a small town's drinking water - YouTube .
You may visit Wisconsin Conservation Voters at their website conservationvoters.org | Your voice, your actions, your vote.
Related Story- Rhinelander paper mill to provide free water to potentially 300 households within 3-mile radius of Stella Town Hall.
In a recent WXPR story Rhinelander paper mill owners launch bottled water program for Stella area | WXPR the Rhinelander paper mill is providing drinking water to Town of Stella households. The twist is that qualified residents regardless of whether they tested their wells or not are eligible. A quote from the article explains the details.
"Ahlstrom recently sent letters to roughly 300 households within a 3-mile radius of the Stella Town Hall.
It comes with an offer to provide 5-gallon water jugs through Culligan Water. No well testing is required.
Tricia Schwartz, communications manager, North America for Ahlstrom, provided this statement to WXPR regarding the program:
“Ahlstrom is announcing the launch of a bottled water program for eligible residents in the Town of Stella and surrounding communities, reinforcing our commitment to the region as a dependable partner. As a longtime employer in our local communities, we understand that concerns about drinking water have been raised by residents of the region, and we are working to be part of the solution.”"
