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Wisconsin farmers fear Portage County ordinance would make it harder to keep farming

The Wisconsin Farm Bureau is concerned that a patchwork of local regulations could severely impact the state’s agriculture industry.

Farm Bureau’s Director of Local Government Nate Zimdars tells Brownfield a proposed ordinance Portage County board members are fast-tracking would be more restrictive than existing state law. “Extra restrictions that would regulate things such as air quality, emissions, smell, and even hours of operation, and we’ve seen these issues pop up in other townships in Wisconsin, especially in the northwestern part of the state, but right here in Portage County, this would be county-wide.”

Zimdars says it would lower the number of animal units allowed on farms without a concentrated animal feeding operation or CAFO permit from the state’s 1,000 animal threshold down to 500. 

Zimdars says farmers have been left out of the process and that is problematic. “They’re worried that they’re not going to stop here, they’re going to continue to go and put more and more restrictions on farms, and the unfortunate thing with all of this is, it doesn’t seem like there is an interest from that county board in engaging with farmers in a true, honest conversation.”

Local ordinances restricting farming have passed in several Wisconsin towns and are being considered in others.  Some have been challenged in court, while others have been rescinded.  A similar county-wide ordinance was defeated at the committee level four years ago in Portage County, but the board makeup has changed, and the issue has resurfaced.

Zimdars says if Portage County passes this ordinance, there are concerns it could serve as a model for environmental activists to restrict farmers statewide.

The proposed county ordinance will be discussed by the county’s ad hoc Livestock Advisory Committee October 29^th, November 5^th, and November 19^th before it goes to the county’s Land and Water Conservation Committee for a vote December 2^nd.  The full county board could vote on the ordinance December 16^th.

Portage County is in the center of the state, and includes several dairy, beef, row crop, and vegetable growers.  It also includes the municipalities of Stevens Point, Plover, Amherst, Rosholt, Nelsonville, and Junction City.

There are other local ordinances passed by Wisconsin towns designed to further regulate farm operations.  For example, the Town of Trade Lake in Burnett County has a similar ordinance that regulates farms with more than 500 animal units, as well as air quality, water use, and road traffic is restricted to standard business hours.  The Town of Eureka in Polk County set the threshold at 700 animal units for new or expanding farms.  The Pierce County Town of Isabelle is trying to pass an ordinance that would limit farms to 700 milking cows and address manure management, air quality, and road damage.

AUDIO: Brownfield’s Larry Lee interviews Nate Zimdars from Wisconsin Farm Bureau, and they discuss local farm operational ordinances and the concerns with a proposed Portage County ordinance that is moving quickly towards a December board vote.