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Wisconsin dairy groups concerned about anti-farmer road ordinances
Wisconsin farmer organizations are concerned about local ordinances aimed at farmers hauling manure on town roads in Langlade County. Kim Bremmer with Venture Dairy Cooperative says new ordinances by the Town of Polar and the Town of Peck want manure haulers to have a 50-thousand dollar road bond, and the Town of Wolf River wants a 50-thousand dollar bond for each town road used. Bremmer says, “Right now, the target is just specific farmers in those areas, specific to manure hauling but, will the next one include logging trucks because that’s an important industry in Langlade County, and when will it be potato farmers? It’s a really dangerous precedent.”
John Holevoet with the Dairy Business Association tells Brownfield says the best advocates for rural road funding are farmers and farmer organizations, and they want to work with local government to make sure they have enough funding. Holevoet is concerned about the direction these three towns have taken. “There’s already existing law that says if a farmer or anyone else for that matter damages the road, they must pay to repair that road, and their failure to do so could expose them to additional damages under state law. So, there’s a mechanism in place under existing laws that deals with the damage so the question is, why do this instead?”
Holevoet says he will continue to reach out to the three towns, and he’s hopeful local farmers, ag groups, and the Wisconsin Towns Association can resolve the road bond issues.
