Jan. 30, 2026
VIROQUA, Wis. — The Viroqua Common Council reviewed a potential strategy Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, to address methane migration at the closed city dump site by installing a passive venting system that could be converted to an active vacuum system in the future if necessary.
Consultant Mike Amstadt of TRC presented the option as a way to potentially save the city approximately $1 million in upfront construction costs while acknowledging the high probability that a more expensive active system will eventually be required. The proposal differs from previous plans by using compatible infrastructure that allows the city to start with a passive approach and upgrade later without abandoning the initial investment.
“The pipe in the ground is basically the exact same,” said Amstadt. “The only thing that if we want to go if we want to have a passive system first and then go active later the one drawback is gas gas rises so it should be rising up to the bottom of the clay cover.”
Amstadt explained that the technical challenge with this hybrid approach lies in the depth of the pipe perforations. He noted that a purely active system uses solid pipes deep in the ground to prevent sucking oxygen into the landfill while a passive system needs perforations higher up to catch rising gas.
“In an active system you want to have a solid pipe that goes deep enough into the landfill so that you don’t have a short circuiting where it just goes right it starts pulling oxygen in the cover,” said Amstadt. “So in an active system you’d have your screened interval deeper than you would in a passive because a passive you want to capture all that gas that’s rising up in the waste column and collect that gas and have that vented as well.”
City Engineer Sarah Grainger detailed the significant financial implications of the choice between the two methods. She reported that a fully active system which uses mechanical blowers to create negative pressure is estimated to cost between $2.2 million and $2.4 million.
“A passive landfill gas system though is in that order of a million dollars less,” said Grainger. “We could install something that would also be used and could take us to an active system.”
Grainger warned that while the phased approach offers initial savings it carries the risk of higher total costs if the passive system fails to meet Department of Natural Resources standards. She noted that the city would face additional design and mobilization fees if the contractor has to return to upgrade the system.
“In the end it’s not going to just be a true sum of those two parts,” said Grainger. “We’ll end up having a higher total if we sort of take this slower approach however there is a chance that that is going to solve our problem.”
Context of the crisis
The urgency of the situation stems from a notice of noncompliance the city received from the DNR in May 2025 after high levels of methane were detected near a church on and a future residential development adjacent to the old dump site. The site, in the middle of the city at the end of Sands Road, was closed in the 1990s but lacks the modern liners and protections used in current landfills. Recent testing in January 2026 involving 23 new monitoring probes revealed that gas is migrating beyond the property lines on multiple sides of the facility.
Methane gas develops in most landfills as a byproduct of material decomposes, and when the dump site was closed there were vents installed to let the gas vent into the atmosphere. As gas was detected outside the site an investigation revealed those vents were not working properly and the gas was migrating through a sand layer under the site and out into surrounding properties.
“The more we investigate out there the more it looks like this is going to be a long-term issue that needs to be monitored,” said Amstadt. “Basically gas is built up in the two landfills to the point that it’s migrating.”
Hanson Farm protection approved
While the council continues to weigh the multi-million dollar remediation plan they took immediate action Tuesday to protect the Hanson Farm housing development located just north of the landfill. The council approved a change order of $143,968 to the existing infrastructure contract with Badger Environmental to install a clay and gravel cutoff trench.
Grainger explained that this trench acts as a barrier to prevent gas from moving into the new residential area. She noted that installing it now while contractors are already mobilizing for the housing development is the most efficient use of funds.
“We want to make sure we’re not making a conduit for gas to move further in,” said Grainger. “We want to cut off anything that might be in a sand layer or any kind of trench that we’re creating like for sanitary sewer or the water mains.”
City Administrator Nate Torres clarified the complex financing for this specific protective measure. He explained that while the housing development is funded by a State Trust Fund Loan the trench will be paid for using funds borrowed specifically for landfill remediation in 2025.
“What will eventually happen if you want to think about this way the property on the Hanson farm will end up being improved two ways,” said Torres. “Mostly through the state trust fund loan but a portion of which is from the landfill remediation loan we got last year which is that $160,000.”
Funding challenges
City officials expressed frustration with the lack of grant funding available for this type of environmental cleanup. Grainger stated she has reached out to the EPA and USDA but the project does not fit neatly into existing Brownfield or Superfund programs because the city is the responsible party and the site itself is not being redeveloped for commercial use.
“We don’t fit nicely into any category,” said Grainger. “I have talked to everyone multiple times.”
Despite the financial hurdles Mayor Justin Running emphasized that the city has no choice but to address the issue to ensure public safety and regulatory compliance.
“This is not a pretty number,” said Grainger regarding the remediation estimates. “But the DNR is pushing to move forward more aggressively.”
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