Minnesota

I. The Onsite Sewage Treatment Program at the University of Minnesota is dedicated to protecting public health and the environment through proper onsite wastewater treatment. Program staff includes engineers, soil scientists, extension educators and university faculty. Specific objectives of our program are to:

• Teach proper system operation and maintenance,
• Teach proper design, installation and inspection,
• Provide information about new and existing technology, and
• Assist local governmental units with regulations and planning.

A part of this program includes specific research on standard and alternative on-site sewage treatment systems. Partnering with several agencies, the University of Minnesota evaluates various individual sewage treatment systems (ISTS). Conventional ISTS do not remove groundwater contaminants such as nitrogen, particularly in geologically sensitve area, and failing ISTS in areas with high water tables can lead to non-point source pollution.

II. Minnesota Extension Safe Drinking Water Program. Educational programs and resources developed by Minnesota Extension are available in one location on the web.

III. The Karst Campaign for Clean Water, Productive Soil, and Profitable Farms. The overall goal of the "Karst Campaign" is to promote clean water, productive soil, and profitable farms through a comprehensive educational strategy targeted for the karst region of southeastern Minnesota. The objectives of this project would help local units of government build local capacity to educate agricultural audiences about farming impacts on surface and drinking water in the karst region, and voluntary ways of reducing these impacts consistent with profitable farming.

Ohio

The Soil Erosion Technology Learning Lab offers several workshops for a variety of audiences including rural communities and townships, contractors, designers, installers and private homeowners. The SETLL serves to test appropriate wastewater treatment technologies and teach practices through workshops, field days and graduate student programs.

Indiana

Safe Water for the Future is an education program of Purdue Extension. It focuses on helping both communities and individuals protect water supplies and the environment through understanding risks and taking actions to prevent problems. Safe Water for the Future provides information on four main topics related to water quality protection: wellhead protection, watershed protection, protecting home well water qualtiy, and general drinking water information.

Michigan

Groundwater Education in Michigan (GEM) Program was initiated by the W.K.Kellogg Foundation (WKKF) in 1988 to create ongoing public awareness of groundwater and drinking water issues and the need to protect the quality of these resources. The Foundation's goal was to support action-oriented, community based project that strive to improve and protect groundwater quality and human health. Thus, GEM was designed to educate citizen and community leaders about the importance of preventing the degradation of groundwater resources and to emphasize action-oriented education and protection strategies that community leaders can follow.

Wisconsin

The Central Wisconsin Groundwater Center is an affiliate of the Center for Watershed Science and Education. It is part of the University of Wisconsin - Extension Cooperative Extension Service and housed in the College of Natural Resources at UW-Stevens Point. The Center works with citizens and local governments throughout Wisconsin, particularly those in the central part of the state. We evaluate management practices for groundwater protection in Wisconsin. We study:

• groundwater pollution trends and natural groundwater quality;
• groundwater quantity issues and effects on surface water;
• wellhead protection strategies;
• drinking water treatment options for private and public water systems;
• basin hydrogeology;
• impacts of agricultural practices on groundwater.