JUNEAU COUNTY, Wis. — The Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) is announcing a settlement with Central Sands Dairy, LLC (Central Sands) requiring it to pay $245,000 to resolve a civil environmental enforcement action against the company for alleged violations of the state’s wastewater discharge laws.
“Compliance with Wisconsin’s wastewater discharge laws helps keep groundwater clean,” said AG Kaul. “Thank you to those at DOJ and DNR whose work helped to obtain this resolution.”
Central Sands owned and operated a large concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO) in Nekoosa, Wisconsin. Central Sands used manure and process wastewater (collectively “manure”) generated at the CAFO to fertilize agricultural fields in Juneau County pursuant to its Wisconsin Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (WPDES) permit.
The state alleged that Central Sands discharged manure to groundwater in violation of the state’s groundwater quality standards. Specifically, the state alleged Central Sands failed to control the manure and process wastewater at the production area to ensure compliance with groundwater quality standards. The state further alleged that Central Sands improperly applied manure to its fields, failed to upgrade a manure storage facility as required by its WPDES permit, and failed to submit a required plan to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
The stipulated judgment requires Central Sands to abandon its waste storage facilities at the CAFO in Juneau County by July 1, 2027, pursuant to abandonment plans conditionally approved by DNR. The cost of completing this requirement is estimated to be $315,000. It must also pay a total of $245,000 in forfeitures, surcharges, and attorney fees. Juneau County Circuit Court Judge Paul S. Curran signed the Order for Judgment on October 5, 2026.
Wisconsin DOJ worked closely with DNR to obtain this result.
The complaint, stipulation for judgment, order for judgment, and judgment are linked.
