State undermines clean water law, residents tell EPA officials

They say state has weakened efforts to fight pollution

Summer of stench. 

The title, which Menomonie resident Jim Swanson came up with, was earned by a monthlong period of stinky air from algae that covered the north side of Lake Menomin about five years ago.

“If you imagine taking a bunch of dirty, soiled baby diapers and putting them in the car for about a month, letting them sit in the car, that’s what it was like,” Swanson said.

Swanson relayed his experience to two representatives of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday night, saying that local efforts to clean the lake were quashed by the state, and he urged swift federal intervention...