Over half of Waupaca County is comprised of agricultural land that sees heavy use of nitrogen-based fertilizers. Runoff from the farmed land has resulted in deteriorating water quality, with some wells struggling during the 1990s to meet 10 ppm (the Maximum Contaminant Level for drinking water set by EPA).
The City of Waupaca adopted a wellhead protection ordinance in 1992 and, at the advice of the wellhead protection commission, installed 24 monitoring wells around the two most productive wells.
Cropping agreements with farmers rewarded them for growing crops that require less nitrogen fertilizer. The voluntary agreements have had a positive effect on ground water quality. As a result, the city is now able to comply with ground water standards (State-EPA Nutrient Innovations Task Group 2009).
Reference:
State-EPA Nutrient Innovations Task Group. 2009. An Urgent Call to Action – Report of the State-EPA Nutrient Innovations Task Group. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Accessed October 2016. https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/documents/nitgreport.pdf.