Links to General Information
Wisconsin Groundwater Coordinating Council Report to the Legislature 2020
High Capacity Wells
- DNR High Capacity Well Application webpage
- DNR press release re: Updated DNR Review Process – High Capacity Well Applications – 6/2/20
- DNR High Capacity Well Applications
- DNR High Capacity Well Viewer
- DNR Water Quantity Use Data and Maps: (application search tool, high capacity well or surface water withdrawal search, water quantity data viewer, annual water reports)
High Water Level Tools
- DNR Groundwater Levels Fluctuations (Flooding)/DNR tracking – Central WI graph
- DNR Ordinary High Water Mark webpage
- DNR Ordinary High Water Mark factsheet
- DNR Ordinary High Water Mark “Public or Private” info
United States Geological Survey/USGS
- Surface Water/Groundwater Connections diagrams – shows impact of high-capacity well to stream flow depletion – 2016
CSWAC Education Video “Unmanaged and Uncontrolled: High Capacity Wells are Drying our Lakes, Streams and Wetlands” (17:00) – 6/2/18 posted on YouTube, narrated by George Kraft, Professor Emeritus, UW-SP
Rules Process
Proposed Rules
Hearings
NR 812 public hearings completed on 12/16/13 (proposed changes); 1/15/19 (permanent rule); standards written/final 7/1/20
Standards
Groundwater Quantity – Per the updated High Capacity Well Review Process webpage, DNR will follow these legal/legislative rules and the ruling of the State Supreme Court in the Lake Beulah Management District v. DNR case (2011 WI 54, ¶¶ 30-34, 39, 44-46, 62, 63) re: “it’s duty to protect and preserve navigable waters under the public trust doctrine”.
- Public Trust Doctrine/Wisconsin State Constitution overview by Wisconsin Legislative Council
- Wisconsin State Supreme Court’s Lake Beulah decision
- NR 281/Water and Sewage – Specifically NR 281.11-12, 281.34
- NR 812/Well Construction and Pump Installation – Specifically NR 812.09(4) -final rule effective 7/1/2020
- NR 820/Groundwater Quantity Protection – Specifically NR 820.30, NR 820.31, NR 820.32