The Assembly has approved a plan to help replace contaminated wells in places like Kewaunee County, where up to 60 percent of wells contain fecal microbes. The proposal would let municipalities offer low- or no-interest loans to fix or replace wells or septic systems, and increase funding for a replacement grant program. > Wisconsin Public Radio
Some Wisconsin dairy farm owners are seeing workers pack up their families and move back to Mexico. One farm owner remarks it’s like “The Grapes of Wrath,” only this time, in reverse: The migrants are leaving a land abundant with economic opportunity for an uncertain future in their homeland. > La Crosse Tribune
Plant-based beverages called milk are a major sore spot for dairy farmers in Wisconsin, where Trump swept up 70 percent of the rural vote. Baldwin has introduced a bill banning the nontraditional drinks from being labeled “milk” — one of several rural issues Baldwin and fellow Democratic senators have championed early and often this year. > Politico
A sizable majority of rural Americans backed Trump’s presidential bid, drawn to his calls to slash environmental rules, strengthen law enforcement and replace the federal health care law. But last month, many of them struck a sour note after Trump signaled he was edging toward abandoning NAFTA. > Wisconsin State Journal
This article lays out what happened, how NAFTA is involved, details about the U.S. dairy glut and why Canada doesn’t have one, and the elephant in the room of industrial dairy squeezing out smaller farms. > Modern Farmer
Since before President Trump took office, he’s promised to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement. But some Wisconsin dairy farmers are worried last month’s cuts to milk contracts are an indication of what could happen in trade talks with Mexico and Canada. > Wisconsin Public Radio
Between 2007 and 2010, an estimated 18 percent of 3,868 private wells in Wisconsin tested positive for coliform bacteria — an indicator of disease-causing bacteria, viruses or parasites — according to a 2013 study by researchers with the state Department of Health Services. The map in this article lays out where the problem is most concentrated. > Wisconsin Watch
