Episode 2: Fighting Fires

Today, we're featuring an episode of Under our Feet, a podcast that dives deep into the Earth and deep into time to explore the ways geologic events have shaped our experience of the world. Season two of Under our Feet focuses on PFAS and groundwater in Wisconsin. In this episode, Dr. Chris Zahasky, Dr. Maureen Muldoon, and Dr. Christy Remucal guide us through the hidden groundwater systems that let PFAS spread through the environment and into our drinking water.More information, and a link to support the show on Patreon, at UOFpod.org. Music by the Blue Dot Sessions. Under Our Feet is a production of Meandering Media.

For the final episode of Public Trust, we head to the communities of Peshtigo and Marinette in northeast Wisconsin, where we meet local residents who have been engaged in a yearslong battle with a multinational company that polluted their drinking water with PFAS. We learn how community members have come together to fight for clean water and why they are committed for the long haul. Transcript available here.Learn more:Midwest Environmental AdvocatesWisconsin Sea Grant

How has PFAS contamination impacted Tribal members? Have PFAS chemicals been found in maple sap, wild rice, fish and other harvestable goods that are important to the Anishinaabe way of life? These are some of the questions the Voigt Intertribal Task Force asked Gavin Dehnert, Wisconsin Sea Grant’s emerging contaminants scientist, after PFAS were found in wolves. In this episode, we take a look at the beginnings of a tribally-driven research project testing the waters of the ceded territories of Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan for PFAS.

In this episode, we return to French Island to learn more about how local drinking water was contaminated through the use of firefighting foam made from PFAS. We meet Mike Jorgenson, a retired firefighter and French Island resident, who explains how firefighting foam was used at the La Crosse airport for routine training and in emergency situations like plane crashes. We also learn how local residents are engaging directly with government officials to advocate for new environmental health protections, including a statewide groundwater quality standard for PFAS.

What happens when an entire community can no longer use their tap water? In this episode, we travel to the small town of Campbell on French Island to find out. French Island resident and local official Lee Donahue gives us a tour of the neighborhood and tells the story of how local drinking water was contaminated. Along the way, we meet local residents who reveal how the crisis has changed their lives.

In this new podcast series from Midwest Environmental Advocates and Wisconsin Sea Grant, host Richelle Wilson explores Wisconsin’s response to PFAS contamination. She visits communities impacted by these toxic "forever chemicals" to understand how they've been affected and what they're doing to secure their rights to clean water. Subscribe to Public Trust on Spotify or wherever you listen. Music: "Hey Come With Me" by Lobo Loco, licensed under CC-BY-NC-ND