Wisconsin farmers are encouraged to attend upcoming Department of Natural Resources hearings on proposed changes to the nonpoint source pollution regulations (NR151).
The Wisconsin Farm Bureau says the proposed changes include:
Basing nutrient management plans on area water quality instead of crop needs.
Creation of new performance standards for total maximum daily loads.
New definitions for the phosphorus index, tillage set backs and process wastewater.
A new tillage setback performance standard would prohibit tillage and row cropping within 20 feet from bodies of water.
The definition of a feedlot is added and includes barnyards, exercise areas and other outdoor areas where livestock are concentrated for feeding or other purposes where vegetative cover is not maintained.
The Farm Bureau will host pre-meetings from 10:30 a.m. to noon before each hearing to further explain the proposal. All of the public hearings begin at 1 p.m. The schedule for the hearings is as follows:
Jan. 25 – Appleton, Outagamie County Highway Department
Jan. 28 – Eau Claire, Best Western Trail Lodge
Feb. 2 – Waukesha, State Office Building.
Feb. 10 – Madison, Lyman F. Anderson Agricultural and Conservation Center
Feb. 11 – Wausau, Rib Mountain Municipal Center
The Farm Bureau will host pre-meetings from 10:30 a.m. to noon before each hearing to further explain the proposals.
Paul Zimmerman with the Wisconsin Farm Bureau talks about the proposal:Zimmerman-DNR
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