Land and Water Resources
Crawford County’s Land and Water Resource
Plan approved by state, to go before County Board
By Ted Pennekamp
The state of Wisconsin has recently approved Crawford County’s 10-year Land and Water Resource Management (LWRM) Plan which will go before the County Board for final approval on Aug. 16.
The plan summarizes Crawford County’s soil and water resources and identifies conservation programs and actions to protect and enhance the resources. The plan is also a guide for the Land Conservation Department in its efforts to assist county landowners and policy makers in protecting and improving land and water resources in the county. The plan’s goals are intended to provide direction to Crawford County and the Land Conservation Department for the next 10 years.
“We tried to find a good balance between farmers, recreational land owners, trout anglers, hunters and land use issues,” said Crawford County Land Conservationist Dave Troester. “The whole purpose is to try to protect our natural resources for all parties. We have good natural resources.”
The plan went to the State Land and Water Conservation Board for approval on Aug. 2. The Mississippi River Regional Planning Commission prepared the plan while working in collaboration with the Crawford County Land Conservation Department. Public input was gathered during various meetings and input was also requested from partner agencies such as the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. A public hearing on the plan was held in May.
Crawford County had its initial LWRM Plan approved by the Land and Water Conservation Board in 2001 and had updates in 2006 and 2010. Troester noted previous plans were for five years.
Troester said that each year of the new 10-year plan, Crawford County will send DATCP a work plan along with a report of what work was accomplished within the past year. DATCP gives the county $100,000 per year for staffing and projects.
Projects can include fencing, rip-rap and streambed restoration, grade stabilization, soil erosion control efforts, closing old wells, encouraging sustainable forestry practices, invasive plant and species control and waste and nutrient management among others.
The Crawford County Land Conservation Department will continue to work with numerous agencies and groups to implement programs. Agencies and groups include but are not limited to, the USDA, DNR, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, DATCP, UW-Extension, Active Partners in Conservation, Southwest Badger RC&D, Valley Stewardship Network, Trout Unlimited and the Crawford Stewardship Project.
