University of Wisconsin–Madison

Author: University of Wisconsin Sea Grant

Testing the Waters

Episode 13 Are PFAS in maple sap, wild rice, fish and other harvestable goods 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. These questions became the central foundation of a …

A PFAS conundrum

Last summer, UW-Madison student Andrew Glasgow worked to develop an inexpensive, accessible method for detection of PFAS in drinking water. It didn’t go as planned.

Plastics learning kit educates and enthralls

Wisconsin Sea Grant’s Anne Moser has learned enough about wastewater treatment to create “Plastic Panic,” a grab-and-go kit that formal and nonformal educators can use to teach about plastic pollution in the Great Lakes, specifically, microplastics. The colorful artwork in the “grab-and-go” kit both educates and enthralls it audiences. Thanks to our guest Anne Moser, …

Lost Industries on the St. Louis River

Tony Dierckins shared his knowledge of the history of the industries surrounding the waterways of Duluth, Minnesota, and Superior, Wisconsin, for the October River Talk. He focused on businesses that have been lost or changed along the way.

Fighting Fires

Episode 12 In this episode, we return to French Island, a community near La Crosse in Western Wisconsin, to learn more about how local drinking water became contaminated with PFAS. For decades, firefighting foams made from PFAS were used at the local airport for routine training and to deal with emergency situations like plane crashes. …