Providing answers to tough questions
Large livestock facilities, including large dairy farms, can cause conflicts with non-farming neighbors and nearby communities. UW-Extension educators help local officials understand a new state law that aims to minimize these conflicts. Photo by WOLFGANG HOFFMANN
As Wisconsin's population grows, suburbs and rural subdivisions are being developed in what used to be an exclusively agricultural environment.
At the same time, some livestock producers are considering expanding their operations. It's a situation that can lead to conflicts between farmers and their non-farm neighbors.
New state law
Wisconsin's new Livestock Facility Siting Law sets up requirements and restrictions about where large livestock operations can be established. Now local governments must re-examine their rules in light of the new law.
Because the law is complicated, and because of concerns that the new law would result in a loss of local control, University of Wisconsin-Extension offered workshops in six locations in April and May. At the workshops local officials learned the ins and outs of the new law and got answers to diffi cult questions.
Workshops inform
Keith Langenhahn, chair of the Marathon County Board and a dairy farmer, says the workshops reassured him that the new state law would not usurp local control.
"Our township had exclusive agricultural zoning for 20 years, and we were concerned about the issue of local control. We had done a landuse plan, and a survey of residents that showed overwhelmingly that people want agriculture here, but 90% do not want operations bigger than 90 cows," Langenhahn says.
Dan Fischer, Manitowoc County executive, says the large facility issue has been controversial. A proposal to put a facility for 5,000 cows in the county was defeated by a 3-to-2 vote after heated debate. The community of Centerville is opposing a proposal for a 4,000-cow dairy, citing concerns that the operation would smell bad.
"The workshop was excellent," Fischer says. "We got a lot of insight into the issues of odor and waste management and about what we need to do next."
Local involvement
The state law sets criteria for controlling odor and protecting water quality, but allows local governments that adopt the standards to make decisions about whether to allow large facilities and where they can be built, explains Greg Blonde, Waupaca County UW-Extension agriculture agent and an organizer of the workshops. -Mary Ellen Bell
WORKSHOP IMPACTS
- More than 500 local officials from 47 counties learned about the state's new livestock facility siting law.
- 80% of 306 participants who responded to a survey said the workshop would help them make better decisions when weighing the interests of farmers with those of their non-farm neighbors.
- 69% of respondents said they learned to identify resources for managing conflicts about land-use and agricultural issues.
- 68% said they would take local action concerning the adoption of the livestock facility siting law.
For more information: Agriculture Agent Greg Blonde, greg.blonde@ces.uwex.edu, (715) 258-6230