Press Release: Gov. Evers, DNR Announce First ARPA Well Compensation and Well Abandonment Grant Awards in Marathon, Portage, and Winnebago Counties

State of Wisconsin sent this bulletin at 11/01/2022 10:00 AM CDT
Office of Governor Tony Evers
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 1, 2022
Contact: GovPress@wisconsin.gov 
 
Gov. Evers, DNR Announce First ARPA Well Compensation and Well Abandonment Grant Awards in Marathon, Portage, and Winnebago Counties
Grants will help expand access to clean drinking water for private well owners
MADISON — Gov. Tony Evers, together with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR), today announced the first grant awards for the new program announced by Gov. Evers in August to provide financial assistance to well owners to support the replacement, reconstruction, treatment, or abandonment of contaminated private wells. Today, the governor and DNR announced five grants have been awarded to improve drinking water quality in Marathon, Portage, and Winnebago counties, including two well compensation grants totaling $30,791 and three well abandonment grants totaling $4,144. 

“Clean water shouldn't be a luxury, it's a necessity—but too often the cost of cleaning up contaminated wells can be expensive, burdensome, and unattainable for so many folks across our state,” said Gov. Evers. “Every Wisconsinite should have access to clean, safe drinking water, and we're working to invest in making sure Wisconsinites across our state, including well owners in Marathon, Portage, and Winnebago counties, have support to help keep their kids, loved ones, and communities healthy and safe.”

These new programs, made possible by federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding, are a $10 million commitment from Gov. Evers to improve drinking water quality for private well owners across the state. With this $10 million investment and broader eligibility criteria than what was previously provided by the state’s existing Well Compensation Grant Program, it is estimated the ARPA Well Compensation and Well Abandonment Grant Programs could help well owners address contamination in more than 1,030 wells across the state.

DNR began accepting applications for the programs on Oct. 3, 2022, and in the first three weeks of the application period, has received nearly two dozen applications from every region in the state. DNR will continue to accept and review applications until the funding is exhausted.

More information regarding the ARPA Well Compensation and Well Abandonment Grant Programs is available on the DNR website here. Applicants and contractors interested in more information are invited to register and attend a webinar about the ARPA Well Grant Compensation and Abandonment Grant Programs at 6:30 p.m. on Nov. 10, 2022. General inquiries regarding the grant program can be directed to DNRARPAWellGrants@wisconsin.gov. 
 
An online version of this release is available here.
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