Monitoring, Assessment and Planning Programs

Wisconsin routinely monitors representative segments of its over 15,000 lakes and 80,000 stream miles. This data is evaluated against standards and criteria to assess the quality of these waters. Wisconsin also conducts research to better define the nature of pollutants, their sources and impacts and develops management strategies to enhance and protect these waters.

Water Condition Monitoring

Wisconsin's extensive program to monitor the state's waters is updated frequently to accommodate new science, program needs, and available resources. Monitoring plans are adjusted to accommodate general assessment needs, status and trend data needs, management evaluation work, and targeted resource evaluation such as confirming or removing impaired waters from the state's Impaired Waters List.

Water Quality Assessments

Wisconsin evaluates the condition of statewide and local water through a general assessment program and targeted assessments for areas with known problems or sensitive resources in need of protection. This data is updated when developing Wisconsin's Water Quality Management Plans, or "Basin Plans" and is stored in the state's pool of water quality information. An updated water condition assessment methodology will be used to update water condition data for the state's 2010 submittal to the USEPA in an integrated Water Quality Assessment Report to Congress. The general assessment will be applied to targeted watersheds known to have a solid background of water quality monitoring data; specific assessments will be applied to waters found to be in poor condition during the general assessment, as well as those waters specifically targeted by water quality biologists for the purpose of impaired waters list refinement or water condition validation.

Water Quality Reporting

Wisconsin routinely submits the state's summary water quality standard use assessments values to the USEPA in its biennial Water Quality Report to Congress. In 2010, general (baseline, statewide) and specific (targeted) assessments will be used to provide an integrated Clean Water Act Water Quality (Section 305b) and Section (303d) Report to Congress.View progress on this report and more information.