policy & advocacy
Strengthening Local Regulation of Large Livestock Operations
A growing number of local governments in Wisconsin are choosing to regulate the way concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) operate in their jurisdictions. Midwest Environmental Advocates helps local elected officials understand the issues, exercise their authority and defend against industry pushback.
Issue Summary
Efforts to develop more protective local regulations started to gain momentum in 2019, when several towns in northwest Wisconsin became concerned about Iowa-based Cumberland LLC’s plans to build a massive hog confinement facility in the area. Community members saw the proposal as a threat to the St. Croix River Watershed, whose abundant streams, lakes, wetlands and fisheries make the area a popular recreational destination. Local residents reached out to MEA for support and guidance in the development of ordinances to protect air quality and water resources from the impacts of industrial agriculture.
Since 2019, protective ordinances that regulate the operation of concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) have been enacted by a total of eleven Wisconsin towns:
- Bone Lake, Eureka, Laketown and Luck in Polk County
- Round Lake and Spider Lake in Sawyer County
- Maiden Rock, Isabelle and Gilman in Pierce County
- Trade Lake in Burnett County
- Stockholm in Pepin County
Protecting Local Health & Safety
Local units of government have the authority to enact ordinances related to the siting and operation of CAFOs. When they do so, they typically choose to enact manure storage and/or siting ordinances with standards that have been defined by DATCP. However, there are a number of scenarios in which local governments may impose more stringent local requirements:
- Under Wis. Stat. § 93.90, more stringent requirements may be enacted if they are grounded in science and necessary to protect public health and safety.
- Under Wis. Stat. §92.15, more stringent requirements may be enacted if they are necessary to protect water quality.
- Under a local government’s police powers, more stringent requirements may be enacted for the “health, safety, and welfare of the public.”
Defending Against Industry Pushback
Perhaps unsurprisingly, these grassroots efforts have attracted the attention of lobbyists for industrial agriculture groups.
Attempting to bully and intimidate local officials is nothing new for groups like Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC), Wisconsin Dairy Alliance, Venture Dairy Cooperative and others. Fortunately, we know their playbook well. MEA has worked closely with local officials in the past to respond to industry pushback, and we’ll continue to stand with them to defend their rights to clean air and water.
- In 2023, Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC) sued the Town of Eureka over its CAFO operations ordinance. A Polk County judge dismissed the case, declaring that the plaintiffs lacked standing.
- In October 2022, Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC) sued the Town of Laketown, a small community in Polk County, over its livestock operations ordinance. The lawsuit was dismissed for procedural reasons after MEA filed a motion to intervene.
- In 2020, Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC) and the Wisconsin Dairy Alliance sent a threatening letter to the Polk County Board of Supervisors alleging that the supervisors could face criminal felony liability for efforts to protect local water resources from CAFO pollution. In response, MEA attorneys helped community members stand their ground and speak out against efforts to intimidate them. MEA assured local government officials that it is fully within their authority to consider whether existing state and county CAFO regulations adequately protect their constituents. The Wisconsin Counties Association (WCA) subsequently issued a memorandum from WCA legal counsel declaring that it “strongly opposes the tactics used by these associations in their communication with the county and further, disagrees with the legal basis of their threats against the county and county supervisors.”
Lisa Doerr
Laketown, WI
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