Wisconsin Groundwater Research and Monitoring Program

Wisconsin is recognized as a national leader in groundwater research, which is appropriate given how uniquely important this resource is for public health, the economy and the environment in this state. For example:

• Wisconsin leads the nation in the number of public water systems that rely on groundwater.
• Over 97% of agricultural irrigation water and more than one-third of the water used for commercial and industrial purposes come from groundwater supplies.
• Many ecosystems in Wisconsin are strongly dependent on groundwater availability and groundwater quality.

Joint Solicitation For Groundwater Research And Monitoring Proposals

Wisconsin's reputation for groundwater research is largely due to the well-established joint solicitation process for groundwater research and monitoring projects. This approach streamlines proposal writing and the review process and improves communication among agencies and researchers. Discussions of some of the benefits derived from these projects and interagency collaboration are presented in the highlights of the GCC-funded research section of the GCC Report to the Legislature.

The Joint Solicitation takes place annually. The call for proposals is sent to potential investigators in the fall and evaluation of proposals occurs until researchers are notified in spring. Work begins the following July 1.

Groundwater Research Projects Funded During FY 2025

Title	Investigators	Contract Period	Funding Agency
Elucidating how individual and mixtures of PFAS correlate to the extent of PFAS groundwater contamination: a toolkit for local and tribal health departments	Gavin Dehnert, Anya Jeninga, Amy Wiersma (UW-Madison)	July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2026	DNR
Developing solutions for reducing nitrate leaching from dairy manure in corn silage systems	Xia Zhu-Barker, Jingyi Huang, Matt Ruark (UW-Madison)	July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2026	DNR
Advanced statistical models for large datasets of pesticide and emerging contaminants in groundwater	Hyunseung Kang, Christopher Zahasky (UW-Madison)	July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025	DATCP
Effects of Great Lake water level fluctuations on groundwater and forests in ridge and swale ecosystems	Steven Loheide (UW-Madison), Evan R. Larson (UW-Platteville), Dominick Ciruzzi (William & Mary)	July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2026	UWS
Impact of nitrate on biogeochemical processes controlling contaminant transport and transformation in a hydrocarbon-contaminated aquifer	Matthew Ginder Vogel (UW-Madison), Beth Parker (University of Guelph), Jessica Meyer (University of Iowa)	July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2026	UWS

Groundwater Research Projects Funded During FY 2024

Title	Investigators	Contract Period	Funding Agency
Impact of solar farms on groundwater recharge	Steven P Loheide II (PI, UW-Madison)	July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2025	DNR
The role of water table fluctuations on PFAS mobility in groundwater	Christopher Zahasky (PI, UW-Madison)	July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2025	DNR
Evaluation of the potential for arsenic release in two cones of depression in northeastern Wisconsin	Erin Berns-Herrboldt (PI, UW-Green Bay)	July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2024	DNR
Long-term threat of geogenic contaminants to water quality and quantity in the Midwestern Cambrian Ordovician Aquifer System	Matthew Ginder-Vogel (PI, UW-Madison)	July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2025	UWS
An experimental investigation on the leaching of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from contaminated soil	Shangping Xu (PI, UW-Milwaukee), Yin Wang (Co-PI, UW-Milwaukee), Erin Berns-Herrboldt (Co-PI, UW-Green Bay)	July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2025	UWS
Risk from pathogens and exposure to antibiotic resistance genes in private wells in Southwest WI	Maureen Muldoon (PI, UW-Madison), Tucker Burch (AI, USDA), Joel Stokdyk (AI, USGS), Joe Bonnell (AI, UW-Madison)	July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2025	UWS
Understanding the quality and rate of recharge on uncultivated landscapes under natural and enhanced conditions	Michael Cardiff (PI, UW-Madison), David J. Hart (Co-PI, WGNHS)	July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2025	DATCP

Groundwater Research Projects Funded During FY 2023

Title	Investigators	Contract Period	Funding Agency
Biomanipulation of groundwater flooding	Loheide, Steven, UW-Madison; Potter, Kenneth (Co-PI, UW-Madison)	July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2024	UWS
Aligning the Wisconsin Idea on water: Interpreting public perspectives and values	Cardiff, Michael, UW-Madison; Genskow, Ken (Co-PI, UW-Madison); Shaw, Bret (Co-PI, UW-Madison)	July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2024	UWS
Characterization of disperse PFAS sources to groundwater using targeted and non-targeted analyses	Remucal, Christina, UW-Madison; Shafer, Martin (Co-PI, WSLH and UW-Madison)	July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2024	DNR
Characterization of PFAS leachability from metal shredder residue	Hicks, Andrea, UW-Madison	July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2024	DNR
Neonicotinoid groundwater leaching potential from potato and management impacts at field scale	Arriaga, Francisco, UW-Madison; Ginder-Vogel, Matthew (Co-PI, UW-Madison), Siemering, Geoffrey (Co-PI, UW-Madison)	July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2024	DATCP

Groundwater Research Projects Funded During FY 2022

Title	Investigators	Contract Period	Funding Agency
Impact of injectable particulate carbon on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) transport in groundwater	Xu, Shangping, UW-Milwaukee; Yin Wang, (Co-PI, UW-Milwaukee)	July 1, 2021 – June 30, 2023	DNR
On-farm research and local partnership to reduce nitrate loading from agriculture in Pepin County	Radatz, Amber, UW-Madison; Matt Ruark, (Co-PI, UW-Madison), Eric Cooley (AI, UW-Madison Division of Extension)	July 1, 2021 – June 30, 2023	DATCP
Advancing the use of nitrate findings to inform groundwater protection and improvement strategies	Turyk, Nancy, UW-Madison Division of Extension; Jennifer McNelly, (Co-PI, Portage County)	July 1, 2021 – June 30, 2023	DATCP
Measurement of bacterial transport and immobilization in variably saturated geologic materials of WI	Zahasky, Christopher, UW-Madison; Eric Roden (Co-PI, UW-Madison), Vy Le (AI, UW-Madison)	July 1, 2021 – June 30, 2023	UWS
Data-driven groundwater depth and risk forecasting in the Central Sands region of WI for sustainable management	Huang, Jingyi, UW-Madison; Ankur Desai (Co-PI, UW-Madison)	July 1, 2021 – June 30, 2023	UWS
Assessment of biochar application to reduce nitrate leaching through agricultural vegetative treatment areas	Sanford, Joseph, UW-Platteville	July 1, 2021 – June 30, 2023	UWS

Groundwater Research Projects Funded During FY 2021

Title	Investigators	Contract Period	Funding Agency
Investigation of PFAS adsorption by selected Wisconsin aquifer sediments	Yin Wang, UW-Milwaukee; Shangping Xu (Co-PI, UW-Milwaukee)	July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2022	DNR
Geophysics-informed transport and shallow bedrock topography in Northeast and Southcentral Counties in Wisconsin	Dante Fratta, UW-Madison; David Hart (Co-PI, UW-Madison), Michael Cardiff (Co-PI, UW-Madison), Francisco Arriaga (Co-PI, UW-Madison), Jingyi Huang (Co-PI, UW-Madison)	July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2022	DATCP, DNR
Neonicotinoid contaminants in Wisconsin groundwater: relationships to landscape cropping system	Russell Groves, UW-Madison; David Hart (Co-PI, UW-Madison), Michael Parsen (Co-PI, UW-Madison), Benjamin Bradford (AI, UW-Madison)	July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2022	DATCP
Investigating in-season cover crops for reducing nitrate loss to groundwater below potatoes	Kevin Masarik, UW-Stevens Point; Jacob Prater (Co-PI, UW-Stevens Point)	July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2022	UWS
Valuing groundwater quality: A cost function analysis of Wisconsin water utilities	James Price, UW-Milwaukee	July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2022	UWS
Source to sink evaluation of phosphorus in the hydrologic system in Wisconsin: Implications for lake eutrophication	Sarah Vitale, UW-Eau Claire; Anna Baker (Co-PI, USGS Upper Midwest Water Science Center), J. Brian Mahoney (Co-PI, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire)	July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2022	UWS
Correlating bedrock folds and fractures to arsenic detection in drinking water, southeast Wisconsin	Eric Stewart, UW-Madison; Esther Stewart (Co-PI, UW-Madison)	July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2021	UWS
Investigating sources of salinity associated with Ra and Sr in the Cambrian-Ordovician aquifer system of eastern WI	Matthew Ginder Vogel, UW-Madison; Patrick Gorski (Co-PI, Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene), Sean Scott (AI, Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene)	July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2022	UWS

All Groundwater Research Projects Funded FY 1985 to FY 2025

• Complete list of projects [PDF]

Final Reports

Information on specific projects is available.

• UW Water Resources Institute searchable repository [exit DNR] – final reports for projects funded by various state programs.
   
• UW-Madison searchable database [exit DNR] – project abstracts and final reports.

Funding Sources And Purposes Of Monitoring Or Research

UWS Groundwater Research

The UWS, through its UW-Madison Water Resources Institute (WRI), has received funding for groundwater research since FY '90. Projects may be fundamental or applied to selected aspects of groundwater research in the natural sciences, engineering, social sciences or law. Projects have been co-funded with DNR, Commerce, DATCP and the National Institutes for Water Resources program (U.S. Geological Survey).

DNR Groundwater Monitoring And Research

The DNR has been funding groundwater “management practice monitoring” projects since FY '86. The intent of these studies, funded through the Groundwater Account of the Environmental Fund, was to identify appropriate management practices to reduce the impacts of potential sources of contamination. In recent years, the DNR has used funds from alternative state and federal sources and has targeted funds at specific issues of concern, including arsenic, emerging contaminants (viruses, antibiotics) and groundwater quantity. Several of these projects have been co-funded with DATCP, Commerce and/or UWS.

DATCP Pesticide Research

From 1989 to 2002, DATCP funded research on pesticide issues of regulatory importance. This funding came from fees paid by pesticide manufacturers to sell products in Wisconsin. Several of these projects have been co-funded with DNR and/or UWS. Starting in FY '03, these funds have not been available for new research.

DSPS Private Onsite Wastewater Treatment System Research

While part of the Department of Industry, Labor, and Human Relations, the Division of Safety & Buildings received an appropriation from 1990 to 1993 to fund research on alternatives to current private sewage-system technology. In 1994, when the appropriation expired, the division continued the program with funding generated through plan review and licensing fees under the Department of Commerce through 2002. In total, eight projects were funded. Two projects were co-funded with DNR and UWS. The division is now part of the Department of Safety and Professional Services (DSPS).

Example of GRAC-funded project on Microbial Source Tracking.