MONROE - The Green County Board of Supervisors voted 28-1 to extend a moratorium on animal feedlot permitting until December to allow three committees time to evaluate recommendations presented during its meeting Tuesday by the Green County Livestock Facility Study Group.
District 21 Supervisor Russ Torkelson, a retired farmer who represents the town of Washington and part of the town of New Glarus, was the sole no vote. The recommendations largely focus on regulation of agricultural operations, specifically farms of a certain size. Torkelson said smaller farmers would also have to wait if they planned to expand and he did not agree with an extension.
Hickory Daniels was one of those farmers concerned about how the recommendations may affect him and attending the meeting as a member of the public. He said he and his wife have operated a 350-cow dairy farm between Juda and Brodhead for 10 years after he relocated from his native Kenosha County.
"All I'm asking you is don't regulate people out of business who are already here, that are trying to make a living, support their families, participate in the community," Daniels said. "Water quality is just as important to me and my kids and my wife as it is to each and every one of you and all of your constituents. I think there is a middle ground to be found."
Members of the study group Paul Beach, county board member appointed at-large, and Tom Daly, chair of the Green County Towns Association, condensed the report in a presentation. The document was provided by the study group to supervisors more than a week before the meeting.
Beach presented on topics like susceptibility, bacteria, nitrates and pesticides with the help of maps and information provided during nine months of meetings with experts in the field of hydrogeology, government representatives from other parts of the state and state Department of Natural Resources officials.
He utilized maps created by experts through the countywide water study to explain susceptibility, adding that most of Green County is composed of a karst, or fractured limestone, system.
"It has fractures going both horizontally and vertically that lets the water penetrate down to the groundwater level too fast," Beach said. "This is the primary issue with some of these contaminants getting into our groundwater because they have such an easy conduit into it. They don't have their surface soils to filter it out."
Beach talked about best practice as a category of recommendations, which he added "applies to us farmers" and addressed concerns previously raised by board members regarding the costs associated with recent incoming concentrated animal feeding operation Pinnacle Dairy. Owned by Todd Tuls of Nebraska, the large-scale dairy farm on 127 acres of leased land along County FF and Decatur-Sylvester Road in Sylvester has been a point of contention for neighboring farms and other county residents for its potential impact on the water quality.
A CAFO is designated by the DNR as an operation with 1,000 or more animal units, which is roughly 714 cows in a dairy operation.
"We have certain areas of this county there should not be one on," Beach said to the board. "We have certain areas of this county that will tolerate, hopefully, the manure and the affluent being spread because there's 50 feet of soil before it hits the limestone ... some counties actually have zoning; can't have a CAFO here, can have a CAFO there, can't over here. If we want to have a fight, we should do that. It would be quite a discussion."
Work in relation to Pinnacle by officials from the county Land and Water Conservation Department has cost Green County roughly $48,000 in personnel and other expenses. The cost for Pinnacle to apply for a permit was $1,500, a figure dictated by state law.
Examples of recommendations include increasing the cost of that application fee. They also advise the hiring of another staff member for the conservation department. Beach said that officials with the DNR only visit CAFOs every five years and that when they do so, a call is made beforehand to notify owners of their visit. While some changes can be implemented at the county level, others are designated by the state.
Board Chair Art Carter said the report would be sent to local legislators. Corporation Counsel Brian Bucholtz said that while the changes may not be possible through local law, supervisors can advocate for change from their state representatives.
Recommendations will be divided among three county committees. County Clerk Mike Doyle said the advisements will likely be dispersed to the Land and Water Conservation Committee, the Health Committee and the Land Use and Zoning Committee. Beach informed members of the county board that while committees can choose to establish law or policy based on the recommendations, they are not required.
"They have the right to toss them if they wish," Beach said. "They can kill them if they want."
County board members Sherri Fiduccia and John Winters were absent.
District 21 Supervisor Russ Torkelson, a retired farmer who represents the town of Washington and part of the town of New Glarus, was the sole no vote. The recommendations largely focus on regulation of agricultural operations, specifically farms of a certain size. Torkelson said smaller farmers would also have to wait if they planned to expand and he did not agree with an extension.
Hickory Daniels was one of those farmers concerned about how the recommendations may affect him and attending the meeting as a member of the public. He said he and his wife have operated a 350-cow dairy farm between Juda and Brodhead for 10 years after he relocated from his native Kenosha County.
"All I'm asking you is don't regulate people out of business who are already here, that are trying to make a living, support their families, participate in the community," Daniels said. "Water quality is just as important to me and my kids and my wife as it is to each and every one of you and all of your constituents. I think there is a middle ground to be found."
Members of the study group Paul Beach, county board member appointed at-large, and Tom Daly, chair of the Green County Towns Association, condensed the report in a presentation. The document was provided by the study group to supervisors more than a week before the meeting.
Beach presented on topics like susceptibility, bacteria, nitrates and pesticides with the help of maps and information provided during nine months of meetings with experts in the field of hydrogeology, government representatives from other parts of the state and state Department of Natural Resources officials.
He utilized maps created by experts through the countywide water study to explain susceptibility, adding that most of Green County is composed of a karst, or fractured limestone, system.
"It has fractures going both horizontally and vertically that lets the water penetrate down to the groundwater level too fast," Beach said. "This is the primary issue with some of these contaminants getting into our groundwater because they have such an easy conduit into it. They don't have their surface soils to filter it out."
Beach talked about best practice as a category of recommendations, which he added "applies to us farmers" and addressed concerns previously raised by board members regarding the costs associated with recent incoming concentrated animal feeding operation Pinnacle Dairy. Owned by Todd Tuls of Nebraska, the large-scale dairy farm on 127 acres of leased land along County FF and Decatur-Sylvester Road in Sylvester has been a point of contention for neighboring farms and other county residents for its potential impact on the water quality.
A CAFO is designated by the DNR as an operation with 1,000 or more animal units, which is roughly 714 cows in a dairy operation.
"We have certain areas of this county there should not be one on," Beach said to the board. "We have certain areas of this county that will tolerate, hopefully, the manure and the affluent being spread because there's 50 feet of soil before it hits the limestone ... some counties actually have zoning; can't have a CAFO here, can have a CAFO there, can't over here. If we want to have a fight, we should do that. It would be quite a discussion."
Work in relation to Pinnacle by officials from the county Land and Water Conservation Department has cost Green County roughly $48,000 in personnel and other expenses. The cost for Pinnacle to apply for a permit was $1,500, a figure dictated by state law.
Examples of recommendations include increasing the cost of that application fee. They also advise the hiring of another staff member for the conservation department. Beach said that officials with the DNR only visit CAFOs every five years and that when they do so, a call is made beforehand to notify owners of their visit. While some changes can be implemented at the county level, others are designated by the state.
Board Chair Art Carter said the report would be sent to local legislators. Corporation Counsel Brian Bucholtz said that while the changes may not be possible through local law, supervisors can advocate for change from their state representatives.
Recommendations will be divided among three county committees. County Clerk Mike Doyle said the advisements will likely be dispersed to the Land and Water Conservation Committee, the Health Committee and the Land Use and Zoning Committee. Beach informed members of the county board that while committees can choose to establish law or policy based on the recommendations, they are not required.
"They have the right to toss them if they wish," Beach said. "They can kill them if they want."
County board members Sherri Fiduccia and John Winters were absent.