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STUDY: CLARK CO. WATER HAS ISSUES
Monday, July 7th, 2008 -- 2:09 pm
Posted by Riley Hebert-News Director
You'd think Clark County—good old rural Clark County—would have no pollution worries. For the most part, you'd be right, but a new report shows we have more than our share of water quality issues.
The Wisconsin Medical Journal recently released a report documenting the "environmental health" of all 72 counties.
As you'd expect, Clark County has excellent air quality.
But, what sticks out is the county's poor water quality.
The study looks at one main pollutant: nitrates. Clark County ranks 64th out of 72 counties.
"We knew nitrates were a big concern in the state of Wisconsin," explains Jessica Athens, the lead author of the report, "Largely, because it's a rural state, so that's what we chose to focus on."
Nitrates are typically the result of farm field run-off.
High nitrate levels have been associated with a number of health issues.
"The primary one is Blue Baby Syndrome, which can be fatal. There are also lower level affects for adults," Athens notes.
Athens admits the study isn't perfect; researchers hope more data on other pollutants will become available in the future.
We'll be taking a more in depth look at the area's drinking water in the coming days.
On The Web:
Read the Study (.pdf)
Sierra Club: Nitrate Info
Wiki: Blue Baby Syndrome
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