Land & water conservation
Agriculture
Agricultural land use has a major impact on human health and the environment. We advocate for land use policies and commonsense regulations that protect water quality and the health and wellbeing of Wisconsin’s rural communities.
- Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs)
- Nitrate Pollution in Wisconsin
our Current Agriculture work
LEGAL ACTION
Ridge Breeze Permit Challenge (Pierce County)
MEA initiated legal action after state regulators issued a permit that would allow Ridge Breeze Dairy to nearly quadruple in size. Our clients are challenging the permit because it doesn’t do enough to prevent contamination of local water resources.
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LEGAL ACTION
Gordondale Farms Permit Challenge (Portage County)
Portage County residents represented by MEA challenged a wastewater discharge permit issued to Gordondale Farms because the permit did not do enough to protect local drinking water. Our legal challenge led to a permit modification that required Gordondale to install groundwater monitoring wells near fields where the farm spreads large amounts of manure.
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LEGAL ACTION
Rob-n-Cin Farms Permit Challenge (Washington County)
After the Wisconsin DNR issued a permit allowing Rob-n-Cin Farms—a large dairy farm located in the Town of Trenton in Washington County—to become a permitted concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO), MEA initiated legal action on behalf of Milwaukee Riverkeeper and a group of neighbors living near Rob-n-Cin’s three production facilities.
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POLICY & ADVOCACY
Strengthening Local Regulation of Large Livestock Operations
A growing number of local governments in Wisconsin are choosing to regulate the way concentrated feeding operations (CAFOs) operate within their jurisdiction. MEA helps local governments understand the issues, exercise their authority and defend against industry pushback.
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our Past Agriculture work
LEGAL ACTION
Defending the State’s Ability to Regulate High-Capacity Wells
MEA represented the Central Sands Water Action Coalition as a friend of the court in a case involving the DNR’s authority to consider the cumulative impact of high-capacity wells when it issues water-withdrawal permits. After years of litigation, the Wisconsin Supreme Court issued a decision in July 2021 affirming that authority.
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LEGAL VICTORY!
Preserving Environmental Oversight of Large Livestock Facilities
In January 2024, a Calumet County Circuit Court rejected a reckless attempt by Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce and factory farm groups to eliminate environmental oversight of the state’s largest livestock facilities. The court’s decision affirms the DNR’s ability to protect water resources from agricultural pollution.
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LEGAL ACTION
Standing Up to Corporate Intimidation of Local Elected Officials
When Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce and industry lobbyists threatened Polk County officials with criminal charges over efforts to protect their water, MEA helped them stand their ground and speak out against efforts to intimidate them.
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Agriculture resources
latest news
Agriculture Updates
LEGAL VICTORY! State regulators must strengthen environmental oversight of Pierce County livestock operation
MEA clients in Pierce County have won a major victory in a three-year fight to protect their community from the impacts of a major expansion at Ridge Breeze Dairy. On August 24, an administrative law judge ruled that a DNR permit allowing the farm to expand its herd to more than 6,000 cows failed to ensure compliance with Wisconsin’s groundwater quality standards.
Protecting Paradise: How residents of the Rush River Valley are taking action to defend the place they love
MEA client Kay Kashian and her husband Phil own Milkhouse Cottage and Gardens, a small rural retreat in Pierce County. Visitors come for the clean water, quiet beauty, and sense of place that defines the Rush River Valley—qualities Kay and Phil have worked hard to preserve and share. Plans for a massive expansion at nearby Ridge Breeze Dairy now put all of that at risk. With representation from MEA, Kay
MEA Joins Call for Stronger Action on Nitrate Pollution
This week, MEA joined more than 80 organizations nationwide in calling on federal agencies to take stronger action to address nitrate pollution and protect public health. We are urging federal regulators to investigate regulatory failures and respond to growing evidence linking nitrate contamination to serious health risks.
Pierce County Residents Speak Up for Clean Water at Ridge Breeze Hearing
At a multi-day legal hearing in March, community members and MEA attorneys highlighted concerns about the proposed expansion of Ridge Breeze Dairy and made the case for requiring stronger water quality protections, including the installation of groundwater monitoring wells.
New MEA Toolkit Helps Local Governments Understand Options for Regulating Large Livestock Operations
A new MEA toolkit gives Wisconsin towns a starting point for drafting and enacting ordinances that strengthen local oversight of concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs).
MEA and Milwaukee Riverkeeper Announce Legal Action After DNR Approves Controversial Expansion of West Bend Dairy Farm
MEA initiated legal action after the DNR issued a permit for the expansion of a large dairy farm located in the Town of Trenton in Washington County. DNR approval ignores the farm’s past environmental violations and endangers local groundwater, trout streams and wetlands.