Landfill environmental monitoring data submittals
Procedures for preparing and submitting landfill data to the DNR's Groundwater and Environmental Monitoring System (GEMS) have been consolidated into a single document called Procedures for Preparing and Submitting Landfill Environmental Monitoring Data [PDF]. We encourage you to take the time to become familiar with this document.
GEMS data submittal overview and resources
The DNR requires all environmental monitoring results — including groundwater, surface water, leachate, lysimeter and gas — to be submitted in electronic format within 60 days of the end of the sampling period (s. NR 507.26, Wis. Adm. Code). Incorrect and/or incomplete data submittals will not be accepted and the DNR will ask the sender to correct and resubmit the data.
Also, all water supply well monitoring results (i.e., private wells) must be submitted in electronic format along with the other required facility monitoring results within 60 days. However, the results of all DNR-required water supply well sampling must also be reported within 10 days of receipt directly to the DNR regional office in which the landfill is located. The water supply results sent to the regional office must be accompanied by two copies of a cover letter highlighting any values that attain or exceed the enforcement standards in NR 140, Table 1.
How to submit data
The submission should include:
- the data in electronic form on either CD or flash drive/jump drive;
- a signed certification form [PDF];
- a list of exceedances, if any;
- an explanation of the cause and significance of any exceedances; and
- a cover letter or memo, if written.
Do not include a hard copy of the electronic data, hard copies or electronic copies of lab reports, COCs, field notes, site maps/drawings or any other documents not listed above with your submission.
If you submit data for multiple reporting periods (and/or multiple sites) together, make sure it is clear on the exceedance list(s) which substances were exceeded at which reporting period and/or site.
You may create lists of exceedances in various ways, but please include at least one version that lists the exceeded substances by parameter (i.e., not by well or date) for each license per report period per site (see example below). Do not include J-flagged results in the list of exceedances unless they exceed the preventive action limit or enforcement standard. Make sure to point out any changes in exceedances that have occurred since the previous reporting period.
Several well and environmental monitoring forms are now available in electronic format on the Groundwater Forms webpage. These include the following:
- Groundwater Monitoring Well Information (Form 4400-89);
- Monitoring Well Construction and Development (Forms 4400-113A and B);
- Soil Boring Log Information (Form 4400-122); and
- Groundwater Monitoring Inventory (Form 3300-67).
Parameter tables
The GEMS database accepts results for 1,154 parameters (as of July 2024). Most parameters are chemical substances. Approximately 80% of these are organic and 10% inorganic. The remainder represent mostly “physical” properties of groundwater or describe various characteristics of monitoring equipment. Biological or radiological characteristics are represented by 11 parameters.
Click the link below to access a table of parameter codes that can be sorted by parameter code, parameter name, CAS number and parameter abbreviation. You can download it to Excel, PDF and Word.
Click the link below to access a table of parameter code changes that have been made since the tables were last updated:
Templates
The following zip file contains a comma-delimited template for Microsoft Excel (comma.xltx) and a fixed-width text template for Microsoft Excel (text.xltm).
Where to submit data
For United States Postal Service, mail to:
GEMS Data Submittal Contact – WA/5
Bureau of Waste and Materials Management
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
PO Box 7921
Madison, WI 53707-7921
For FedEx, UPS, hand deliveries, etc. send to:
GEMS Data Submittal Contact – WA/5
Bureau of Waste and Materials Management
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
101 S Webster St
Madison, WI 53703
Do not send a duplicate copy to the site hydrogeologist or engineer unless specifically requested to do so.