Wisconsin Ag Connection - Farm Groups Call for 'Fair' Great Lakes Compact

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Farm Groups Call for 'Fair' Great Lakes Compact
Wisconsin Ag Connection - 02/21/2008

A group of 17 state organizations, include some farm groups, are calling for a 'strong and fair' Great Lakes Compact. In a letter to state lawmakers, the organizations urged policymakers to draft a bill that will not damage private property rights by placing groundwater in the public trust of Wisconsin.

Last week, the State Senate held an informational hearing on a legislative draft that professed to simply ratify and implement the Great Lakes Compact in Wisconsin. However, the letter points out that the legislative draft went beyond simple ratification and, instead, would immediately create a new water use permitting and statewide water conservation system that grants very broad authority to the Department of Natural Resources. This far exceeds what is necessary to implement the Compact.

According to the Wisconsin Farm Bureau, the letter stressed that communities and industries be placed on an equal footing with other states bordering the Great Lakes. Instead, the current version of the Compact would give Illinois a 2.1 billion gallon per day free pass.

"We all support the goal of protecting Great Lakes water," reads the letter. "However, the Compact is not that simple and the Compact ratification process should not be used as a mechanism to avoid careful consideration of all of the impacts of any new regulatory system on Wisconsin industry, business and agriculture."

Once adopted, it will be nearly impossible for the Wisconsin Legislature to make changes in the future. The Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation and other industry groups are asking the Legislature to carefully scrutinize the impact of any new permitting and regulatory requirements on Wisconsin's ability to maintain vibrant communities and family-supporting jobs. They also note in the letter that federal law already protects water in the Great Lakes from being diverted to water-deprived states.

Other farm groups to sign the document include the Midwest Food Processors Association, Wisconsin Cranberry Growers Association, Wisconsin Paper Council, Wisconsin Pork Association, and Wisconsin Potato & Vegetable Growers Association.

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