DNR and DHS issue PFAS-based consumption advisories for Oneida County wells area and parts of Green Bay

The Department of Natural Resources and the Wisconsin Department of Health Services issued PFAS-based consumption advisories this month after targeted sampling in two separate areas produced elevated concentrations.

Oneida County (Stella area). A statewide private-well sampling study in 2022 identified groundwater contamination near the Town of Stella. Subsequent surface-water, fish and deer sampling prompted a DNR/DHS advisory: for waters in and near the Moen Chain (Moen Lake and the connected lakes), the agencies issued a "do not eat" recommendation for all fish species; Sunset Lake and Snowdon Lake are included in the advisory as well as Starks Creek upstream to Starks Spring. For hunters, muscle from deer taken within a five-mile radius of the Town of Stella is recommended at no more than one meal per month; deer liver from that area is not recommended for consumption. The deer sampling included voluntary submissions from local hunters.

Green Bay waterfowl advisory. A separate advisory covers portions of Green Bay after tissue testing detected PFAS in resident waterfowl sampled during a 2022'24 survey. Mallard breast muscle in much of the bay triggered conservative limits: the department and DHS recommend one meal per month for mallards in a broadly defined area of the bay and one meal per week for wood ducks. A smaller southern area of the bay (near Long Tail Point south to the Fox River mouth) carries a "do not eat" recommendation for mallards.

DNR said that in Green Bay samples were collected in July and August and included juvenile birds; the agency said those facts support the conclusion that the elevated PFAS levels were locally acquired rather than carried in from distant staging areas. DNR officials said they have begun expanded fall sampling for waterfowl in Green Bay and will reassess advisories as new data arrive. In Oneida County, DNR and EPA staff are collaborating on further site inspection and drinking-water sampling; DNR said it will consider additional wildlife sampling as remediation or further site work proceeds.

Why this matters: PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are persistent in the environment and can accumulate in animal tissue. State agencies said the advisories are protective, advisory guidance to allow individuals to limit exposure while additional assessment and remediation occur.

What to do: DNR and DHS reiterated standard risk-reduction steps: avoid eating organs (where PFAS concentrates) from animals taken in advisory areas, consume muscle cuts from advisory areas at the recommended frequencies, and follow local guidance for private-well testing and water treatment. The agencies said they notified tribal, local and other government partners before the public releases and updated the DNR's advisory pages and hunting/fishing web material.

Next steps: DNR and DHS will continue targeted sampling and coordination with EPA and local governments; the agencies said they will update advisories if additional evidence changes risk assessments.