STEVENS POINT, WI—A multi-day legal hearing began yesterday over concerns that one of Wisconsin’s largest dairy farms is polluting local drinking water. On the first day, groundwater experts and affected community members testified about widespread water quality issues in the area around Gordondale Farms, a concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO) near the village of Nelsonville in Portage County.
Midwest Environmental Advocates (MEA) is representing five current and former neighbors of Gordondale Farms, who are challenging a state-issued permit that they say fails to protect public health. The dispute centers on changes made by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) that rolled back key environmental safeguards—decisions made without public input.
“This case is about protecting the fundamental right to clean drinking water,” said MEA Staff Attorney Adam Voskuil. “Families living near Gordondale Farms deserve transparency, accountability, and science-based safeguards—not backroom deals that put their health at risk.”
At issue are permit provisions that required Gordondale Farms to monitor the effects of manure spreading on local water resources. Overapplication of manure and fertilizer, coupled with the area’s sandy soils, has led to dangerously high levels of nitrate contamination in groundwater around Gordondale Farms.
“It’s been seven years since Nelsonville residents began pleading with the DNR to require transparency and accountability from Gordondale Farms. Meanwhile, many of us in Nelsonville still can’t drink the water in our own homes. It’s past time for state officials to prioritize health over profits,” said MEA client and Nelsonville resident Lisa Anderson.
Nitrate pollution poses serious health risks, especially for infants and pregnant people. Exposure has been linked to blue baby syndrome, birth defects, thyroid disease, and certain cancers, including colon cancer.
In a 2021 landmark ruling, the Wisconsin Supreme Court upheld the DNR’s authority to require groundwater monitoring at large livestock operations to prevent contamination. However, instead of complying with the commonsense monitoring requirements, Gordondale Farms filed a legal challenge. That lawsuit ended in a closed-door settlement that significantly weakened the groundwater monitoring requirements now at issue in this hearing.
The hearing is expected to continue over several days.
Learn more about this case here.
