|
Protecting Wisconsin’s farm and forest
lands is wise public policy.
• Wisconsin’s diverse
agriculture and strong forestry infrastructure are cornerstones
of our economy. Their resource bases must be protected and enhanced.
• Farmland
in the state is being converted to other uses and forest land fragmented
at unprecedented rates in state history.
• Our farms and
forest lands have important strategic value for food and renewable
energy production. Protecting them is not a luxury. It is a necessity.
• Strategies
to protect Wisconsin’s farms and forests have broad-based
support and bipartisan leadership in key stakeholder sectors including
agriculture, environment, forestry, community development, local
governments and community organizations, manufacturing and tourism.
• Proposals
for strengthening farm and forest land protection can be designed
to be revenue-neutral and targeted to priority areas that most
need protection.
• Farm and forest land protection programs
are voluntary.
• Working lands proposals are designed
to boost economic development in rural areas and provide for sustainable
growth in urban areas.
• Tools such as county comprehensive
planning encourage local involvement to determine where to focus
working lands protection efforts and how to accommodate and encourage
sustainable growth in urban areas.
• Compact growth in our
cities and urban areas saves tax dollars on government services
such as public protection, roads, sewer and water.
• Federal
program dollars for farmland protection are authorized for increases
in the 2008 Farm Bill. A strong state program is needed to support
local efforts and, in turn, maximize Wisconsin’s access to
federal matching funds.
• Improved farm and forest land
protection offers landowners and those who work the land new tools
for keeping their lands in productive uses.
• Wisconsin’s
working lands provide a variety of environmental services, including
soil and water conservation, nature-based recreation, wildlife
habitat and carbon sequestration.
• Wisconsin’s rich
rural traditions are important to state residents, and surveys
show that residents support strategies to protect farms and forests.
Download PDF version of this fact sheet »
| 