Water department reports approved
By Steve Van Kooten
The Prairie du Chien Common Council approved two reports from the city’s water department during their June 3 meeting.
The slim agenda, which featured little else during the open meeting, focused on the 2024 Wastewater Treatment Facility Compliance Maintenance Report and the 2024 Consumer Confidence Report (CCR).
For the CCR, Utilities Director Larry Gates said, “This is an annual report that is required by the DNR (Department of Natural Resources), and I have to have it submitted to them by July 1. This shows all of the testing in the past year and the results.”
According to Gates, the city has four wells, three reservoirs, 58 miles of water main, 367 fire hydrants, 796 main valves and approximately 2,400 water meters.
The city also supplies water to the towns of Bridgeport and Prairie du Chien.
The report contains a list of contaminants discovered in the water system, including disinfection byproducts from chlorination, inorganic contaminants (arsenic, barium, nitrates, etc.), per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), pesticides and herbicides, and radioactive contaminants.
The city is required to test for some contaminants yearly, while others can be tested on a less frequent basis. The CCR report utilized sample data that came from 2023 or 2024 for inorganic and byproduct contaminants and data from 2020 for radioactive contaminants.
The city’s water system did not incur any violations because all of the contaminants measured were within acceptable levels, according to the report.
The CCR notes that the presence of contaminants in water does not always indicate a health risk, and it encourages people to contact the Environmental Protection Agency’s safe drinking water hotline at 800-426-4791.
Gates also introduced the wastewater compliance report for the council’s adoption.
“The annual report shows all lab testing, facility maintenance and operations throughout the year and compiles it into a letter grade for the wastewater treatment facility,” he said.
The maintenance compliance report assesses the quality of the wastewater treatment facility’s performance over the past year in nine categories, including influent flow, effluent quality, biosolids management, and staff and financial management, among others. The facility scored A grades across all nine categories.
The report notes that the 2024 flood “caused issues” and “took out” the wastewater facility’s UV disinfection system.
The CCR and the summary report from the maintenance compliance report will be available on the city’s website (cityofpdc.com), according to Gates. The CCR will also be made available to the public at City Hall and the Prairie du Chien Memorial Public Library.
Well 5
Well 2 has been shut down since April 17, 2024 due to high PFAS levels.
“Due to the shutdown of Well 2, the city approved the construction of another well, which is being installed as Well 5,” said Gates.
The CCR notes that PFAS sampling took place between 2023 and 2024, noting that the city only utilizes the three wells that have PFAS levels compliant with the limits set by the Department of Health Services.
The test well for the fifth well site will occur within the next few months, according to Gates.
“Once we find out the results on the groundwater quality for that, we can continue on with our construction of Well 5,” he said.
Wastewater upgrade
Gates said the wastewater plant upgrade is “still in the works.”
The city expected to receive $10.5 million in congressional funding for the facility; however, that money was part of the cuts made to Wisconsin’s appropriations funding earlier this year. The office for Congressman Derrick Van Orden, who requested the appropriation, said that he is “having ongoing conversations with the Appropriations Committee about the status of CPFs (community funding projects) in the FY26 (fiscal year 2026) appropriations process.”
City Administrator Chad Abram said that the city is exploring other possible funding sources, including Safe Drinking Water and Clean Water loan programs.
Alderpersons Nick Crary, Vicki Waller, Bob Granzow, Nate Bremmer, Jaaren Riebe, Mark Bowar, Kayla Ingham and Andy Ringgold were in attendance. Abram, City Planner Nate Gilberts, Fire Chief Tad Beutin and Gates were also present. Mayor David Hemmer was absent.
The next meeting is scheduled for June 17.
Other business
• Abram reported that the city has lost approximately 30 trees in the park on St. Feriole Island since the flooding last summer.
• Crossing Rivers Health will be hosting a 10-year anniversary event on Wednesday, June 11, from 3 to 7 p.m.
