Congratulations to Zach from Blogging Blue and WKBT Channel 8 News in LaCrosse. Why?
They appear to be the only two media outlets that got the headline correct regarding the recent potential pollution of Trempealeau County drinking water by a frac sand mining company: ” Frac sand mine may have contaminated drinking water. “
The rest of the media reports seemed to center on this headline: “ Regulators target wrong sand mine company ” . That’s roughly the headline used by everyone from the JS Online, to the Eau Claire Leader Telegram, KARE TV in Minneapolis, the Star Tribune, etc, because Trempealeau County officials originally issued citations to the wrong company. But is that really the story here? That regulators cited the wrong company?
I guess I’d like to know how a frac sand mining company forgot to construct the required concrete linings in their waste water ponds. How did that happen? Can such a thing be simply an oversight? Was it a cost cutting measure that operators took deliberately? Are there other shoddy practices going on? Are there any studies available about the dangerous effects of polyacrylamide, the chemical that may eventually find its way into the groundwater? Are there any reasonable projections about if and when that might happen?
With the proliferation of sand mines expected to continue across western Wisconsin in the near future, aren’t these the questions that the media should be asking, and shouldn’t all of us demand some answers?
Question: Where is the Wisconsin DNR, who should be enforcing proper lining of such ponds?