Coal Ash poisoning our water? Prove it says DNR.

Isn't it time to put the kibosh on that meddling EPA? Getting rid of it is the GOP’s ultimate goal, a bizarre and blatantly irresponsible goal that seems to make sense to their unquestioning voter base. It starts with getting government out of the way, and ends at hurting the “job creators.” It’s simple to understand wordsmithing that works like the saying abracadabra.

Without serious environmental “job killing” regulations, the following major threaten to our water supply would be the norm. Still, conservative voters don’t seem one bit concerned.

The question has always been; similar to climate change, why don’t we just play it safe, just in case? Throwing caution to the wind...

We Energies said the Oak Creek Power Plant ash could not be definitively tied to higher levels of chemicals like boron and molybdenum in local groundwater.

The least costly solution is to transition away from coal completely, which according to the Walker administration is an attack on that lovable black stocking stuffer, and probably a part of some liberal plot to kill jobs and businesses. We've all seen how bad things are in liberal Madison, one of the best cities in the country in almost every category?:

A new study from a Wisconsin environmental group has found that when the ash from coal-burning power plants is used in places like construction projects, some harmful chemicals can wind up in drinking water. Recently, however, the environmental group Clean Wisconsin issued a report that contends that more than 1 in 5 wells across Racine, Kenosha, Waukesha and Milwaukee counties are contaminated with molybdenum at amounts above the state health advisory level. Clean Wisconsin's Tyson Cook said the problem is that construction firms have used the ash as fill material under roads, schools and other buildings.

We're using coal ash as fill material...oh, why not. Of course, we could move to a strictly private system using bottled water? That might be more expensive than that quarterly bill you get from your municipality, but it does get government off your back and downsizes your late mail delivery.   

Ann Michna’s family, which includes her husband Frank Michna, their children, and pets, all drink bottled water. Frank, who's part of a family that has lived in Caledonia for 160 years, said he blames We Energies coal ash for spoiling his tap water and causing health problems. He said the company should be held accountable. “They tried to cover it up and say, ‘Well we’re doing the right thing now.’ But you didn’t in the past, and you need to pay for that,” he said.

Based on the DNR’s ideologically driven opinion, nothing needs to be done, because so far no one can prove beyond a reasonable doubt we’re poisoning our water. And besides, many metallic poisons occur naturally:

The DNR's Ann Coakley said that more study is possible, but said that she finds fault with Clean Wisconsin's report. “At this time we really do not concur that there is a clear correlation between the elevated molybdenum in groundwater and the beneficial use of bottom ash from coal-fired power plants,” said Coakley. “We also know that there’s evidence that molybdenum is a naturally occurring metal in Wisconsin soil and rock formation.