At a well-attended Saratoga Town Board Meeting, the Town Board unanimously voted to contract for the placement of 10 groundwater monitoring wells that will encircle the proposed Wysocki CAFO in the Town of Saratoga. All the citizens that spoke, spoke in favor of the proposal with great passion. No citizen or elected official opposed. The citizens emphasized the need to get the well network in this fall so that baseline data can be gathered prior to any activity by the Wysocki organization. This will provide the town and its citizens with solid data for further legal action in the event that the Wysocki organization moves ahead with its plans and the aquifer that all the citizens of Saratoga depend upon is degraded.
This proposal will be put out to bid, but it is expected to cost something in the neighborhood of $60,000 the first year, and considerably less in subsequent years. The key parameters that will be monitored will include:
- Determine the soil type and any impervious layers that may or may not exist in the borehole. This is key data for any mathematical models used to simulate the effect of the CAFO on our aquifer.
- The shallow wells will vary from 20 to 50 feet depending on location and there will be two deeper wells at 50 – 70 feet.
- All water samples will be tested for pesticides, herbicides, coliform bacteria, total dissolved solids, total organic nitrogen and ammonia.
- In addition all samples will be tested for oxygen demand, nitrate nitrogen, chloride and phosphorus.
- Water depth will be measured every 4 hours automatically.
- Other tests may be added after an examination of the initial proposal by a committee of knowledgeably citizens and professionals.
It cannot be overly emphasized how significant this action by our town board is. They are definitely looking out for their residents.
Protect Wood County & Its Neighbors 