Public access to landfill environmental monitoring data (GEMS on the Web)
The data contained on the DNR's Groundwater and Environmental Monitoring System is available to the public through GEMS on the Web. This online portal allows the public to access all monitoring data available for each facility in the system from the time it began submitting data to the DNR.
Who will find the data in GEMS on the Web useful
The data provided in GEMS on the web will be most useful to you if you are:
- an environmental or engineering consultant;
- a laboratory that submits data to GEMS;
- an owner of a private well adjacent to a landfill that is monitored; or
- a citizen who is interested or concerned about the chemicals monitored at a landfill.
Please note, however, that the data accessible in GEMS on the Web appears in a "raw" form. The data has not been prepared nor summarized in any way for evaluation, and it is not presented graphically. Do not try to interpret the data without getting help from a scientist or someone who has equivalent experience evaluating data of this kind. In addition, it would be difficult for you to interpret the data unless you have some knowledge about the location and purpose of the sampling points at the landfill.
Contact DNR staff if you have questions or concerns about landfills in your area before accessing data through GEMS on the Web.
Types of facilities with data in GEMS
The GEMS database is the main repository for most environmental monitoring data collected at solid and hazardous waste facilities in Wisconsin. The facilities in the database include:
- both closed and actively operating landfills, municipal as well as industrial (paper mill, utility, foundry sites);
- a few hazardous waste facilities that have monitoring systems as part of their license requirements (there are no hazardous waste landfills in Wisconsin); and
- a limited number of properties cleaned up under the DNR's Remediation and Redevelopment Program with long-term monitoring requirements. Additional sites may be added in the future.
Glossary
If you are not familiar with some of the terms used in the GEMS database, use the Glossary link at the top of a page within the interface to get a list of available terms, acronyms and abbreviations used in GEMS.