Cedar Sauk Ash Landfill has 26 groundwater monitoring wells, 9 of which have been polluted above federal advisory levels based on samples collected between March 08, 2010 and March 17, 2015. Groundwater at this site contains unsafe levels of boron.
Site descriptionCedar Sauk Ash Landfill is a closed, un-lined 42-acre coal ash disposal site located in Cedarburg, Wisconsin. It was operated as a landfill between 1969 and 1979 and ultimately received 650,000 cubic yards of coal ash from the Port Washington Power Plant. Groundwater contamination caused by the site has been documented since groundwater monitoring began in 1978. The landfill was capped in 1997. Prior to becoming a landfill, the site was operated as a sand and gravel quarry.
Port Washington Power Plant was a 348-MW coal-fired power plant that began operating in 1935. The plant has been replaced with a 1,100 MW natural gas generating station.
The Cedar Sauk Ash Landfill is listed among the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's proven damage cases, indicating that it has polluted groundwater or surface water at levels which threaten human health and the environment.
For more information on Wisconsin coal ash, see Earthjustice's fact sheet, Coal Ash Disposal and Reuse in Wisconsin.