A partnership among local governments, area farmers and utilities is improving regional water quality and saving millions of dollars to meet EPA requirements.

Yahara WINS (Watershed Improvement Network) was formed in 2017 in an effort to meet regulatory requirements for phosphorus entering the Yahara Watershed and water quality goals overall.

“Instead of each entity going it alone… we did our own analysis and figured out how much it would cost for us just to take care of our part,” said Martye Griffin, director of Ecosystem Services at Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District.

Griffin said to meet the phosphorus reduction requirement, MMSD “would have had to put millions and millions of dollars into treatment.” He added that rising costs for the sewerage district translates to higher rates for property owners.