Walker On Drinking Water Reports: ‘We Take Them Seriously’

Gov. Scott Walker says he takes concerns about nitrate pollution in Wisconsin drinking water seriously, at a time when the issue has been receiving media attention.

The news organization Al Jazeera America has been running a series of stories on water pollution in Wisconsin, including nitrogen problems in Kewaunee County. The Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism is also about to take a closer look at nitrates in other drinking water wells.

“We take them seriously,” Walker said when asked about the media reports. “Whether or not either of those two sources are necessarily reflective of what (the Department of Natural Resources) and others would find remains to be seen. But we certainly would take a look at that in the future.”

Walker said clean water is important to job creation and a good quality of life.

An environmental group recently petitioned the federal Environmental Protection Agency to pressure the Wisconsin DNR to resolve more concerns the EPA spelled out years ago about the state’s administration of the Clean Water Act.