Chapter 160

160.25(1)(b) (b) A regulatory agency shall impose a remedial action for a specific site which is reasonably related in time and scope to the substance, activity or practice which caused the enforcement standard to be attained or exceeded at the point of standards application.

160.25(2) (2) If a facility is subject to regulation under chs. 283 or 289 to 292 and if the concentration of a substance in groundwater attains or exceeds an enforcement standard at a point of standards application, the department shall require remedial actions for a specific site in accordance with rules promulgated under s. 160.21 as are necessary to achieve compliance with the enforcement standard at the point of standards application.

160.25(3) (3) If nitrates or any substance of aesthetic concern only attains or exceeds an enforcement standard, the regulatory agency is not required to impose a prohibition or close a facility if it determines that:

160.25(3)(a) (a) The enforcement standard was attained or exceeded, in whole or in part, because of high background concentrations of the substance; and

160.25(3)(b) (b) The additional concentration does not represent a public welfare concern.

160.25(4) (4) If compliance with the enforcement standard is achieved at the point of standards application, s. 160.23 applies.

160.25(5) (5) 

160.25(5)(a) (a) A regulatory agency shall consider the existence of background concentrations of naturally occurring substances in evaluating response options to the noncompliance with an enforcement standard for that substance. A regulatory agency may not order remedial action under sub. (1) or (2) at a site where the background concentration of a substance is determined to be equal to or greater than the preventive action limit, unless the regulatory agency determines that the proposed remedial action will result in the protection of or substantial improvement in groundwater quality notwithstanding the background concentrations of naturally occurring substances.

160.25(5)(b) (b) Paragraph (a) does not apply to a substance which is carcinogenic, teratogenic or mutagenic in humans.

160.25(6) (6) If the concentration of a substance in groundwater attains or exceeds an enforcement standard at a point of standards application and if a waste facility subject to the waste management fund incurs costs for repairing environmental damage which arises from those occurrences which are not anticipated in the plan of operation and which poses a substantial hazard to public health or welfare, those costs may be paid as provided under s. 289.68.

160.25(7) (7) An action under this section with respect to a specific site does not constitute a major state action under s. 1.11 (2).

160.25 History History: 1983 a. 410; 1995 a. 227.

160.255 160.255 Exceptions for private on-site wastewater treatment systems.

160.255(1) (1) In this section, “private on-site wastewater treatment system” has the meaning given in s. 145.01 (12).

160.255(2) (2) Notwithstanding s. 160.19 (1), (2) and (4) (b), a regulatory agency is not required to promulgate or amend rules that define design or management criteria for private on-site wastewater treatment systems to minimize the amount of nitrate in groundwater or to maintain compliance with the preventive action limit for nitrate.

160.255(3) (3) Notwithstanding s. 160.19 (3), a regulatory agency may promulgate rules that define design or management criteria for private on-site wastewater treatment systems that permit the enforcement standard for nitrate to be attained or exceeded at the point of standards application.

160.255(4) (4) Notwithstanding s. 160.21, a regulatory agency is not required to promulgate rules that set forth responses that the agency may take, or require to be taken, when the preventive action limit or enforcement standard for nitrate is attained or exceeded at the point of standards application if the source of the nitrate is a private on-site wastewater treatment system.

160.255(5) (5) Notwithstanding ss. 160.23 and 160.25, a regulatory agency is not required to take any responses for a specific site at which the preventive action limit or enforcement standard for nitrate is attained or exceeded at the point of standards application if the source of the nitrate is a private on-site wastewater treatment system.

160.255 History History: 1995 a. 27; 2011 a. 146.

160.257 160.257 Exceptions for aquifer storage and recovery systems.

160.257(1) (1) In this section:

160.257(1)(a) (a) “Aquifer storage and recovery system” means all of the aquifer storage and recovery wells and related appurtenances that are part of a municipal water system.

160.257(1)(b) (b) “Aquifer storage and recovery well” means a well through which treated drinking water is placed underground for the purpose of storing and later recovering the water through the same well for use as drinking water.

160.257(1)(c) (c) “Municipal water system” means a community water system, as defined in s. 281.62 (1) (a), that is owned by a city, village, town, county, town sanitary district, utility district, public inland lake protection and rehabilitation district, or municipal water district, or by a privately owned water utility serving any of the foregoing.

160.257(1)(d) (d) “Specified substance” means one of the following:

160.257(1)(d)1. 1. Chloroform.

160.257(1)(d)2. 2. Bromodichloromethane.

160.257(1)(d)3. 3. Dibromochloromethane.

160.257(1)(d)4. 4. Bromoform.

160.257(1)(e) (e) “Treated drinking water” means potable water that has been treated so that it complies with the primary drinking water standards promulgated under ss. 280.11 and 281.17 (8).

160.257(2) (2) Notwithstanding s. 160.19 (1) and (2), the department is not required to promulgate or amend rules that define design or management criteria for aquifer storage and recovery systems to minimize the amount of a specified substance in groundwater or to maintain compliance with the preventive action limit for a specified substance, however, the department shall promulgate rules that define design or management criteria for aquifer storage and recovery systems to maintain compliance with drinking water standards promulgated under ss. 280.11 and 281.17 (8).

160.257(3) (3) Notwithstanding s. 160.21 (2), the point of standards application for an aquifer storage and recovery well with respect to a specified substance is 1,200 feet from the aquifer storage and recovery well and at any other well that is within 1,200 feet from the aquifer storage and recovery well.

160.257 History History: 2001 a. 109.

160.26 160.26 Enforcement. Regulatory agencies shall enforce the provisions of this chapter in accordance with enforcement procedures and subject to the penalties established by statute for activities and practices regulated by the regulatory agency.

160.26 History History: 1983 a. 410.

160.27 160.27 Substances in groundwater; monitoring.

160.27(1) (1) The department, with the advice and cooperation of other agencies and the groundwater coordinating council, shall develop and operate a system for monitoring and sampling groundwater to determine whether substances identified under s. 160.05 (1) are in the groundwater or whether preventive action limits or enforcement standards are attained or exceeded at points of standards application.

160.27(2) (2) At a minimum, the monitoring system shall include the following components:

160.27(2)(a) (a) Problem assessment monitoring to detect substances in the groundwater, including substances identified under s. 160.05 (1), and to assess the significance of the concentrations of the detected substances;

160.27(2)(b) (b) Regulatory monitoring to determine if preventive action limits or enforcement standards are attained or exceeded and to obtain information necessary for the implementation of responses with respect to specific sites under ss. 160.21, 160.23 and 160.25;

160.27(2)(c) (c) At-risk monitoring to define and sample at-risk potable wells in areas where substances identified under s. 160.05 (1) are detected in the groundwater or where preventive action limits or enforcement standards are attained or exceeded;

160.27(2)(d) (d) Management practice monitoring for establishing the management practices necessary to meet the requirements of ss. 160.19 and 160.21. The regulatory agency responsible for a particular management practice has primary responsibility for monitoring that practice and the department shall ensure that the monitoring specifications meet the needs of the regulatory agency; and

160.27(2)(e) (e) A monitoring plan for collecting, managing and coordinating the monitoring components specified under pars. (a) to (d) with the monitoring information from other regulatory agencies.

160.27(3) (3) The department shall notify the regulatory agency and the department of health services when monitoring data indicate that:

160.27(3)(a) (a) A substance is detected in groundwater;

160.27(3)(b) (b) The concentration of a substance, by a reasonable degree of scientific certainty, is determined to be changing; or

160.27(3)(c) (c) The concentration of a substance attains or exceeds a preventive action limit or an enforcement standard at a point of standards application.

160.27(4) (4) The department shall coordinate the collection of groundwater monitoring data and the exchange of these data among agencies for the purpose of this chapter and shall ensure, with the advice and cooperation of other agencies, the technical accuracy of the monitoring data used in the administration of this chapter.

160.27(5) (5) Notwithstanding subs. (1) to (3), a regulatory agency may develop and operate a system for monitoring and sampling groundwater to determine compliance with this chapter. This section does not affect the authority of the department to require groundwater monitoring by owners or operators of solid or hazardous waste facilities, water systems or wastewater systems under chs. 280 to 285 or 289 to 299.

160.27(6) (6) The department shall notify the owner of any potable well and the occupant of any residence served by that well of the results of any monitoring data it obtains from samples of water from that well.

160.27 History History: 1983 a. 410; 1995 a. 27 s. 9126 (19); 1995 a. 227, 378; 1997 a. 35; 2005 a. 347; 2007 a. 20 s. 9121 (6) (a).

160.27 Cross-reference Cross-reference: See also ch. NR 141, Wis. adm. code.

160.27 Note NOTE: 2005 Wis. Act 347, which affected this section, contains extensive explanatory notes.

160.29 160.29 Petitioning for rule making.

160.29(1) (1) Where the department finds that a preventive action limit or an enforcement standard for a substance is, or will be, attained or exceeded at points of standards application at numerous locations, and that adoption or revision of rules under s. 160.19 or 160.21 by the regulatory agency is an appropriate response, the department may submit a petition for rule making to the regulatory agency. The petition shall include all of the following:

160.29(1)(a) (a) The reason for the request for rule making by the department.

160.29(1)(b) (b) The research or monitoring data supporting the finding by the department that the preventive action limit or the enforcement standard for a substance is, or will be, attained or exceeded at the points of standards application.

160.29(1)(c) (c) A recitation of the authority of the regulatory agency to regulate the substance.

160.29(2) (2) Within 120 days after receipt of a petition under this section, the regulatory agency either shall deny the petition in writing or shall submit to the department a proposed timetable for the revision or promulgation of the requested rules and proceed with rule making under subch. II of ch. 227. Failure of the agency to respond to the petition within 120 days constitutes denial of the petition.

160.29(3) (3) Section 227.12 does not apply to petitions under this section.

160.29 History History: 1983 a. 410; 1985 a. 182 s. 57.

160.31 160.31 Legislative review. Nothing in this chapter affects the legislative review of any proposed rule relating to animal waste treatment, under s. 13.565.

160.31 History History: 1983 a. 410.

160.32 160.32 Common law and liability.

160.32(1) (1) Common law unaffected. Nothing in this chapter restricts or abrogates any remedy which any person or class of persons may have under other statutory or common law.

160.32(2) (2) No admission of liability. A response at a specific site taken by any person under s. 160.23 or 160.25 is not evidence of liability or an admission of liability for any potential or actual environmental pollution, as defined under s. 299.01 (4).

160.32 History History: 1983 a. 410; 1995 a. 227.

160.33 160.33 Public participation. Each regulatory agency shall promulgate rules which provide for public participation in the issuance and administrative enforcement by the regulatory agency of any special order adopted pursuant to the requirements of this chapter.

160.33 History History: 1983 a. 410.

160.34 160.34 No mandatory well repair as a condition for testing. No regulatory agency may require as a condition for the testing of a private water system at the request of the owner that the owner agree to institute changes necessary to bring the construction or design of the water system into compliance with administrative rules in effect at the time of testing but not in effect prior to 1954.

160.34 History History: 1983 a. 410; 1995 a. 378.

160.36 160.36 Cooperation with American Indian tribes and bands.

160.36(1) (1) Requirement to cooperate. The department shall cooperate with American Indian tribes and bands with the approval of the tribal governing body, for the purposes specified in this section.

160.36(2) (2) Agreements regarding monitoring. The department may negotiate and enter into cooperative agreements with American Indian tribes and bands for the purposes of:

160.36(2)(a) (a) Providing advice and assistance to American Indians who wish to establish a groundwater monitoring program on the lands of any American Indian tribe or band.

160.36(2)(b) (b) Obtaining for state use any information on groundwater quality which results from a monitoring program conducted by American Indians.

160.36(2)(c) (c) Using state resources to conduct groundwater monitoring on the lands of any American Indian tribe or band.

160.36(2)(d) (d) Sharing with an American Indian tribe or band the results of groundwater monitoring conducted by the department, by a regulatory agency or by the geological and natural history survey which relate to the potential contamination of groundwater under the lands of an American Indian tribe or band.

160.36(3) (3) Agreements regarding enforcement. The department may negotiate and enter into cooperative agreements with American Indian tribes and bands for the following purposes:

160.36(3)(a) (a) Providing advice and assistance to American Indians who wish to establish groundwater regulatory programs on the lands of any American Indian tribe or band.

160.36(3)(b) (b) Using state resources to conduct regulatory activities on the lands of an American Indian tribe or band.

160.36 History History: 1983 a. 410.

160.50 160.50 Groundwater coordinating council.

160.50(1) (1) General functions. The groundwater coordinating council shall serve as a means of increasing the efficiency and facilitating the effective functioning of state agencies in activities related to groundwater management. The groundwater coordinating council shall advise and assist state agencies in the coordination of nonregulatory programs and the exchange of information related to groundwater, including, but not limited to, agency budgets for groundwater programs, groundwater monitoring, data management, public information and education, laboratory analysis and facilities, research activities and the appropriation and allocation of state funds for research.

160.50(1m) (1m) Funding for groundwater research. The groundwater coordinating council shall advise the secretary of administration on the allocation of funds appropriated to the board of regents of the University of Wisconsin System under s. 20.285 (1) (a) for groundwater research.

160.50(2) (2) Subcommittees. The groundwater coordinating council may create subcommittees to assist in its work. The subcommittee members may include members of the council, employees of the agencies with members on the council, employees of other state agencies, representatives of counties and municipalities and public members. The council shall consider the need for subcommittees on the subjects within the scope of its general duties under sub. (1) and other subjects deemed appropriate by the council.

160.50(3) (3) Report. The groundwater coordinating council shall review the provisions of 1983 Wisconsin Act 410 and report to the chief clerk of each house of the legislature, for distribution to the legislature under s. 13.172 (2), concerning the implementation of the act by January 1, 1989.

160.50 History History: 1983 a. 410; 1987 a. 186; 1989 a. 31.