Midwest Environmental Advocates (MEA)

Financials

In 2022, Midwest Environmental Advocates received $1,060,616 in contributions, ² $26,206 in program service revenue, ³ and $1,088,867 in total revenue. ⁴ The same year, MEA incurred $726,436 in expenses ⁵ and held $1,103,336 in assets. ⁶

Advocacy

Pipelines

Midwest Environmental Advocates engages in litigation and activism incubation to oppose energy pipelines in Wisconsin. ⁷

In 2022, MEA filed comments with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources challenging the redirection/reconstruction of the Line 5 Enbridge oil pipeline on permitting grounds. ⁸  The re-direction of the pipeline is an attempt to comply with a federal court order after the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians successfully convinced the court to prevent Enbridge from operating its existing lines on Native American land. ⁹

In addition to litigation, with support from Wisconsin’s Green Fire, a left-of-center conservation organization, produces various forms of publications to mobilize opposition to energy pipelines in the state of Wisconsin. ⁷

Mining

MEA refers to mining as “a historic threat to clean air and water.” ¹⁰ The organization opposes both metallic mining for iron, zinc and copper, and non-metallic mining such as fracking for natural resources. ¹⁰ MEA has argued for increased regulation in mining and has opposed the development of mines by challenging the legality of mining permits under Wisconsin environmental laws. ¹⁰

In 2017, MEA brought a claim against the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources for granting Meteor Timber, a natural resources company, a permit to construct a sand processing facility within 16 acres of unoccupied wetlands located in Monroe County, Wisconsin. ¹¹  The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources then reevaluated and denied the permit. In 2022, the Wisconsin Supreme Court declined to review the department’s decision to not grant Meteor Timber a wetland construction permit. ¹¹

PFAS Litigation

Per- and Polyfluorinated Substances (PFAS) refers to thousands of chemicals used in the production of various products including fire retardant foam, non-stick cookware, and water repellant clothing. ¹²

In 2022, MEA, in conjunction with the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin, petitioned the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to regulate the level of PFAS in groundwater. ¹² The attorney who filed the petition on behalf of League of Women Voters was not an employee of that organization, but a legal fellow affiliated with the left-of-center Equal Justice Works. ¹³

Wisconsin Public Service Commission

In August 2025, Midwest Environmental Advocates, in partnership with Our Children’s Trust, filed a lawsuit on behalf of 15 Wisconsin youth against the Wisconsin Public Service Commission and the state Legislature. The case argues that state policies favoring fossil fuels and limiting renewable energy requirements violate the plaintiffs’ constitutional rights by worsening climate change and harming their health and futures. The plaintiffs are not seeking financial damages but instead call for reforms to state energy laws. The suit highlights issues including respiratory illness, flooding, displacement, and mental health impacts linked to climate change in Wisconsin. ¹⁴

Leadership

Tony Wilkin Gibart is the executive director of Midwest Environmental Advocates. ¹⁵ Prior to joining MEA, Gibart was the associate director of End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin, ¹⁶ an organization that advocates for housing and resources for abuse survivors and gun-control laws targeted at individuals who have committed domestic abuse. ¹⁷