The Wisconsin Potato and Vegetable Growers support Senate Bill 76, Senator Scott Fitzgerald’s legislation to protect and preserve Wisconsin farmers’ investment in existing high capacity wells for irrigation and other farm uses.
“Senator Fitzgerald’s bill will provide certainty for Wisconsin farmers who rely on irrigation to grow vegetables and feed the world” said Tamas Houlihan, executive director of the WPVGA. “This legislation will maintain compliance with Wisconsin’s highest environmental standards for repaired, replaced and reconstructed wells and will provide valuable data for researchers”.
SB76 would also require the DNR to conduct a critical study of high capacity wells and their potential impacts on surface waters in areas in the Central Sands region of Wisconsin.
“The results of the study should help ensure than any future regulatory changes are based on science, not rhetoric,” said Houlihan.
Wisconsin’s growers are good environmental stewards and good neighbors. Their support for this reasonable high capacity well legislation is just the latest in a series of sound, science-based efforts supported by WPVGA members. Other initiatives include:
The WPVGA is working in conjunction with the Village of Plover and other stakeholders to develop and implement a Little Plover River Flow and Watershed Enhancement Plan. The plan will identify and implement solutions to improve Little Plover River stream flows and increase water retention within the Little Plover River Watershed.
The Wisconsin potato industry has committed $5 million over the next decade to support the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s potato and vegetable research program.
“Our industry is one of traditions, but it’s also one of innovation and ingenuity,” said Houlihan. “Generation after generation, our members have earnestly worked side by side with our neighbors to keep our communities and our environment healthy and strong.”
The WPVGA was founded in 1948 to assist its members to be successful through education, information, environmentally sound research, promotion, governmental action and involvement. The members of the WPVGA are good stewards of the environment. The WPVGA is committed to engaging in continuous improvements in agricultural environmental stewardship. WPVGA members are devoted to developing science-based solutions to environmental concerns, and firmly believe that science is a critical guide to the development of effective water policy in Wisconsin that science is a critical guide to the development of effective water policy in Wisconsin.
For more information, visit WisconsinWaterFacts.com.
