Look Who's New To The Private Water Team!
Jared Niewoehner joined the Private Water Supply section as the new field supervisor on Jan. 13, taking on the responsibility of managing the Private Water Field Team. Jared has been with the DNR’s Drinking Water and Groundwater program for over 10 years, working with both the Private Water and Water Use sections. Before joining the DNR, Jared worked for a well drilling company in his hometown in Iowa. He holds a B.S. in geoscience from the University of Iowa.
In February, the Private Water program welcomed AJ Kannal and Abby Nicholson to the team as intake specialists for the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Well Compensation Grant program. They are helping well owners with their grant applications and providing initial reviews to determine grant eligibility.
In March, the team welcomed Bella Eggebrecht and Moses Jatta to the team. Bella, a hydrogeologist, will review landfill variances and other approvals required under NR 812. Moses, also a hydrogeologist, will conduct technical reviews of ARPA Well Compensation grant applications and payment claims.
Deb Lyons-Roehl Retires
Many of you have likely interacted with Deb Lyons-Roehl over the years. She helped Private Water with many tasks associated with well construction reporting, well compensation grants and landfill variances. After 24 years with the DNR, Deb retired on Feb. 24. Congratulations to Deb on her retirement!
From The Field
Field Staff County Coverage Updates
To improve coverage and ensure geologic variety for our field staff, we’ve made some updates to the private water county assignments. Adam Scheunemann and Steve Janowiak have shuffled some counties. Adam now has Taylor, Clark, Marathon, Wood, Portage and Waushara counties. Steve now has Adams, Juneau, Marquette, La Crosse, Jackson and Monroe counties. You can view the updated coverage map and contact information on the DNR website.
 Pump Installation/Well Filling And Sealing Inspection Coverage
We plan to continue expanding our notification program for pump installers with the goal of conducting more field visits for pump installations and well filling and sealing activities. This effort will help establish relationships, observe pump installation work and answer questions to help pump installers meet code requirements. In accordance with s. NR812.03(1) Wis. Adm. Code, we will continue sending notice letters to groups of pump installers to increase our statewide compliance inspections. We appreciate everyone who has worked with the DNR on this effort.
New Round Of ARPA Well Grants
On Jan. 28, 2025, Governor Evers and the DNR announced a new round of ARPA Well Grants to support the replacement, reconstruction, treatment or abandonment of contaminated private and non-community wells. The program will provide up to $5 million for grants and has the same income eligibility requirements as the previous round of grants.
The DNR began accepting applications for the new round of grants on Feb. 3, 2025.
Eligibility Criteria:
- For a contaminated well serving a residence, family income may not exceed $100,000 for the prior calendar year.
- For a contaminated non-community public system well, business income may not exceed $100,000 for the prior calendar year.
- Determining contamination: One sample from a certified lab that exceeds a primary drinking water standard, two samples for fecal bacteria.
Award Amounts:
- The maximum award amount under the program will be $16,000.
- The cost share requirement under the program will be $0.
Other Important Information And Contacts:
To Help Get Payment Quickly:
- The DNR needs to inspect the well and pump installation prior to payment. Notify your regional water supply specialist as soon as all well construction and pump installation activities are completed.
- Submit the well construction report for the new well and the abandonment report for the old well promptly.
- Make sure that the well owner receives your invoice and sends in their payment claim when all the work is done. We can’t make payment until we receive a claim from the awardee.
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Self Register For MyWisconsin ID And Join Our IT Drop-In Sessions
 You may now self-register for MyWisconsin ID.
The DNR will begin using MyWisconsin ID instead of WAMS for Well Construction Reports and other drinking water reporting systems beginning June 2025.
Setting up your MyWisconsin ID now may result in a smoother experience once the full integration with MyWisconsin ID has occurred. WAMS users who have already created a MyWisconsin ID during the Wisconsin Water Well Association Conference in January. You do not need to take further action at this moment.
How To Self-Register
Tips For Successful Registration
- Registration is time-sensitive. Once your name and email are entered, registration must be completed within 2 hours.
- By default, registration includes Multi-factor authentication (MFA). MFA is an electronic security process requiring users to prove their identity using two verification methods – online banking systems commonly use MFA.
- A specific MyWisconsin ID is for an individual person, not a facility or company ID and should NEVER be used by others.
DNR IT Drop-In Sessions
The Drinking Water and Groundwater IT team invites those impacted by the transition to MyWisconsin ID to join a virtual session where DNR IT will help users register for MyWisconsin ID, show feature demonstrations and answer questions. These drop-in sessions will be held every day between May 12-16, 2025 from 9 – 10 a.m. and again from 1 – 2 p.m.
Questions Or Need Help?
WCR & WAR Reporting Tips
Updates: The Well Construction Information System will now verify location details when saving a report.
- You can still save with errors by selecting the check box.
Reminders:
- When applicable, enter the property fire number in the ‘Fire No’ field and the Street/Road name in the ‘Well Address’ field.
- In areas with limited cell phone reception, coordinates collected on a phone may not be accurate. Adding a note describing the well’s general location can be helpful for DNR reviewers when verifying location. (ex. Well is 50ft northeast of the house).
- Do an initial save after entering some location details because the WCR system has a time-out period (red text along the top of the screen). We recommend you save every 5-10 minutes to avoid losing your work.
What to do if a fill & seal report disappears after clicking "Save and Submit" and a ‘Duplicate Record’ error appears during re-entry?
- This likely happened because of a time-out in the Well Filling & Sealing system, which disconnected the record from your User ID.
- Email DNRDGPrivateWaterWebSupport@Wisconsin.gov for help.
- Include a brief description of the error message you see, along with the county, date and well address of the report, so we can reconnect the record to your User ID.
Sampling News & Reminders
- The Variance/Approval - Water Test Request (form 3300-009) has been developed to use when a variance or approval requires follow-up sampling. The form:
- Has a field for the lab slip Variance or Approval number.
- Directs the sampler to consult the variance/approval letter for specific parameters.
- Must be used in addition to the laboratory's forms
- Does not replace the need to collect the First Water Quality Sample or the First Water Quality Lab slip.
- When delegating sample collection to another licensee or individual, the delegated sample(s) shall be submitted using the required DNR form(s) and in their own sample bottles. Sample submissions cannot be used to meet multiple requirements.
NR 812/NR 146 Updates
The DNR is developing revisions to Wisconsin Administrative Code Chapters NR 812 and NR 146. The rule revisions are intended primarily to address pump installation standards, the requirements for obtaining or renewing a drilling or pump installing license and the requirements for continuing education.
The DNR developed draft revisions to NR 812 and NR 146 and is holding a public comment period to solicit additional information or advice on the effect of the proposed rules. Find materials for review at the DNR's Proposed Permanent Administrative Rules webpage under NRB Order Numbers DG-03-23 (NR 812) and DG-04-23 (NR 146).
Comments on the NR 812 and NR 146 draft revisions are being accepted from March 10 – April 22, 2025. Please email comments to DNRNR812PublicComments@wisconsin.gov.
A virtual public hearing will be held on April 15, 2025 at 10 a.m.
Join online via Zoom.
Meeting ID: 892 5692 6445
Join by phone: 312-626-6799
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Final Tidbits
The Summer 2025 issue of the Natural Resources Magazine will feature a special piece about well drilling! Subscribe now to receive your copy of the magazine.
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