Nebraska Agrochemical Contamination Throws Families, Communities, Water Providers into Turmoil

“There’s two ways to handle losing your child to cancer,” Gary Peters told Circle of Blue. “Get involved and do something or just disappear.”

After Gary and Sheri Peters’ son Jacob died of a rare and aggressive form of lymphoma, they did something. Today they are both active in the Pediatric Cancer Action Network, a grassroots advocacy and support group in Nebraska. Their work has revealed to them one of the darker sides of rural life in Nebraska. Six kids in town besides Jacob were diagnosed with cancer from 2005 to 2013.

An investigation by Circle of Blue uncovered compelling evidence for why — agrochemical contamination in Nebraska’s surface, ground, and drinking water.

Towns across the United States at risk for contamination from nitrate are typically neighbors to the ag industry and use groundwater.

They are also among the smallest towns in the United States, where more often than not officials cannot afford the infrastructure needed to keep water supplies clean.

Nitrate contamination is increasingly becoming a global concern, according to The World Bank.

This is the second of a two-part series. Read part one here.

What’s Up With Water – February 8, 2022

For the news you need to start the week, tune into “What’s Up With Water” fresh on Monday’s on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, i Heart Radio, and SoundCloud.

Featured coverage from this week's episode of What's Up With Water looks at:

In Louisiana, state leaders are using federal funds to help struggling water systems. On January 25, state lawmakers approved $274 million for water utilities to repair their water and sewer networks.

Also in the United States, a new report finds that climate change is making it costlier to insure commodity crops against severe weather. The report analyzed federal data, and found that annual insurance payments made to farmers to cover their losses from droughts and floods tripled on average in the last 25 years.

This week Circle of Blue published the first story in a two-part series on the impact of farm chemicals on families and communities in Nebraska.

From the Archives:

Toxic PFAS chemicals have been detected at dozens of groundwater sites across Michigan. Photo © J. Carl Ganter / Circle of Blue

Michigan's Groundwater Emergency

Toxic PFAS chemicals have been leaking into groundwater for decades from a field that was formerly used for firefighting training at Wurtsmith Air Force Base in Oscoda, Michigan. The groundwater, tainted by foams used to put out the fires, seeped into the marsh, then into the river, and on down the watershed, even into Lake Huron. A few years ago, the Michigan Department of Community Health issued a warning to anglers: Do not eat the fish from the marsh.

Wurtsmith is one entry in a long and varied ledger of contaminated sites in Michigan that are contributing to a state groundwater emergency that has spilled over into rivers, streams, and lakes.

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