News

584 Pounds of Medication Turned In

November 20, 2009

[excerpted from the Journal-Sentinel]

Residents of five Milwaukee County communities dropped off 584 pounds of unused or expired medications at their local police departments in recent months, Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District officials said Thursday.

The pharmaceuticals were collected this week; MMSD will pay for proper disposal.

The district asks area residents not to dispose of medicine in a sink, drain or toilet because sewage-treatment plants are not designed to remove them from water, and the chemicals are discharged to Lake Michigan.

Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton Calls on Legislative Leadership to Lead Veto Override of Independent DNR Secretary Bill

November 16, 2009

MADISON - Lieutenant Governor Barbara Lawton today issued the following statement regarding Governor Jim Doyle’s veto of Assembly Bill 138, also known as the Independent DNR Secretary Bill.

Governor Signs Bill Banning Phosphorus from Dish Detergents

November 13, 2009

Nov 12, 2009 - Wisconsin Association of Lakes is pleased to announce that the State of Wisconsin today took another important step in controlling nutrient pollution in Wisconsin’s waters, as Governor Jim Doyle signed legislation prohibiting the use of phosphorus in dishwasher soaps.We wanted to take a moment to say "thanks" for your support of us, which helped make this law possible.

Study Shows Privatizing Water Would Cost YOU More

November 11, 2009

Milwaukee Riverkeeper helped form a coalition named KPOW (Keep Public Out Water) this past summer to stop the City of Milwaukee's move to privatize the Water Works.

While the option is "off the table" for the moment, the Common Council has inferred the issue is not dead.  A new study by Food & Water Watch shows that privatizing Milwaukee's water would result in a drastic cost increase to the average consumer.

DNR plans to pour 4,000 gallons of the chemical into Germantown ponds to kill intruders

November 11, 2009

[excerpted from the Journal-Sentinel]

Germantown - Louisiana red swamp crayfish lurking in a village pond will be drinking Wisconsin bleach this week in a continuing battle between the invasive species and state environmental officials.

New Plan for Runoff Reduction Could Create Loophole Weakening Enforcement

November 11, 2009

[excerpted from the Daily Reporter]

Municipal officials see a proposed change in state runoff rules as flexibility. But to a clean water advocate, it looks more like a loophole.

Campaign to save Menomonee River takes root

November 11, 2009

Milwaukee Riverkeeper is a member of the Southeastern Wisconsin Watershed Trust (SWWT), a collaborative effort to achieve healthy and sustainable water resources throughout the Greater Milwaukee Watersheds.

Through SWWT, Milwaukee Riverkeeper has been working in a variety of ways to increase the health of the Menomonee River.  Wauwatosa Now recently ran a feature on the work we're undertaking and how YOU can get involved.

PCB's to be Cleared from Mitchell Park

November 9, 2009

[excerpted from the Journal-Sentinel]

Workers in protective suits equipped with hoses for fresh air will enter a 120-year-old brick sewer beneath Mitchell Park on Monday to begin removing a thick, jelly-like layer of soil and debris contaminated with toxic chemicals, Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District officials said.

Federal environmental officials have agreed to a partial cleanup of polychlorinated biphenyls in the old brick line so work can proceed on a wet-weather relief sewer to be built beneath the aged wastewater conduit.

$20 Million Set for River Cleanup

November 9, 2009

[excerpted from the Journal-Sentinel]

Federal and state regulators are planning to remove more than 4 million pounds of contaminated sediments from the Milwaukee River and Lincoln Creek at an estimated cost of $20.2 million.

The sediments in Lincoln Park on the city's north side represent the largest single source of pollution from polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, in the river and Milwaukee's harbor.

Reparations Ordered for Sunken Menomonee River Barge

November 4, 2009

Milwaukee Riverkeeper has been trying to get rid of the obtrusive Menomonee River Barge since 2005.  We were the first to call it in when we spotted it sinking a year later.

Finally after years of wrangling for removal, barge justice has prevailed and the owner has been ordered by the state to pull the wreck from the Menomonee.  He has also been struck with a $37,691.25 fine for violating Wisconsin's water regulation laws.

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