Another 136 acres of high-quality working farmland has been permanently reserved for agricultural production (see map here). On August 3, in conjunction with the Town of Windsor, Madison-based Groundswell finalized an agricultural conservation easement on an eastern Dane County farm under a joint program to purchase development rights from conservation-minded farmers. The agreement brings to 31 the number of area farms Groundswell protects in this way, a total of more than 4,500 acres.

The Town created the purchase of development rights program, or PDR, in 2006 with the assistance of Groundswell. The program is part of Windsor’s response to the press of residential and other non-agricultural development on what is some of the nation’s most productive farmland. The Town mapped 11,000 of its acres for continued agricultural use. This area is designated by the state as a Wisconsin Agricultural Enterprise Area. The Town adopted the PDR program to permanently protect farms through individual agreements like the one just enacted. Groundswell and the Town take joint responsibility for monitoring the agricultural easement annually.

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program, the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCAP) Working Lands Initiative Purchase of Agricultural Conservation Easements (PACE) program and Groundswell members helped fund the easement purchase.

On July 3, 2012 Groundswell completed an agricultural conservation easement on Fountain Prairie Farm, owned by John and Dorothy Priske. The Priskes raise Scottish Highland cattle on their 277-acre grass based farm and direct market their meats to customers through farmers’ markets and local restaurants.

The large and diverse farm just west of Columbus in Columbia County contains high-quality rotationally-grazed pastures, a restored prairie and wetland, and a stretch of Babcock Creek, a tributary to the Crawfish River. Permanent protection of the farm helps meet the goals of the DNR’s Glacial Habitat Restoration Area by protecting grassland and wetland habitat in a mosaic of conventional corn and soybean farms for the benefit of waterfowl, pheasants, and songbirds.

The Priskes have a commitment to sustainability and have won several awards for their farming practices, including the Conservation Farmer of the Year award in 2010, given by the Wisconsin Land and Water Conservation Association, and a Leopold Restoration Award in 2011, given by the University of Wisconsin Arboretum. By restoring wetlands, controlling runoff from the farm, leaving some pastures ungrazed to benefit nesting grassland birds, and installing a 50 kilowatt wind turbine that powers the entire farm, the Priskes have demonstrated their strong land ethic.

When the Priskes bought the farm in 1986, it was a conventional corn and soybean operation. After several years of operation, things began to change for them. The death of two of their dogs from cancer, declining numbers of songbirds on the farm, and the rapid rate of soil erosion alarmed John and Dorothy. They felt there had to be another way to farm – and that’s when John discovered Aldo Leopold.

After reading Leopold’s “The Farmer as a Conservationist,” John and Dorothy realized that the industrial style of agriculture that had become the norm was not the only way to farm. They knew there was a way that could nourish the land and the farmer. A trip to New Zealand, where they saw sheep being raised on rotationally grazed pastures helped solidify their ideas. Back home, the conversion of their farm to grass started in earnest.

Some 14 years later, the Priskes haven’t looked back. Each new conservation practice they incorporate on the farm leads them to another. Continuous improvement in the health of their land is a passion for the couple. Placing a conservation easement on the farm to protect it in perpetuity was a logical step.

“We wanted to be proactive and take responsibility for this land,” John says.  “The conservation easement allowed us to make a permanent decision to preserve the land that we’ve been stewards of for so many years.

Funding for this conservation easement purchase came from the USDA Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program, Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection Purchase of Agricultural Conservation Easements program, The Conservation Fund, and the members of Groundswell.

To celebrate the completion of the conservation easement, the Priskes and Groundswell hosted a special dinner on the farm prepared by Chef Tory Miller of L’Etoile and Graze restaurants on Sunday, September 16, 2012.

 

Good news that yesterday, we purchased 16.5 acres of land at Allen Creek Wetlands State Natural Area on Star School Road just south of Fort Atkinson. The property is about two miles upstream from where Allen Creek flows into the Rock River south of Fort. The property is mostly sedge meadow with savanna and other uplands, providing good nesting and foraging habitat for a variety of birds and other animals, possibly including the state-threatened Blanding’s turtle.

The state natural area is within the Allen Creek River-based Conservation Area, a part of the Glacial Heritage Area which is an initiative to link parks, preserves, and wildlife and natural areas to nearby cities and villages in Jefferson County and beyond, providing opportunities for residents and visitors to get outdoors to enjoy and learn about nature. The property will be open to the public, and we hope to donate it to the DNR for long-term management.

Funding for this acquisition came from the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program, the North American Wetlands Conservation Act, and Groundswell members. Our thanks to the landowners and everyone else who made the conservation of this property possible.

 

On Wednesday, March 7, 2012 Groundswell purchased the last 10 acres of privately owned shoreland at the Amey Pond Wildlife Refuge on Highway 23 east of the Wisconsin Dells. Amey Pond (map) is a 225-acre DNR wildlife property that provides habitat for a wide variety of waterfowl, including wood ducks, coots, and mallards; every spring white pelicans spend a few days on Amey Pond on their way north.

We bought the property from refuge neighbor Tom Bruss. A retired firefighter, Tom purchased the property several years ago in the hopes that it would one day become part of the refuge. We thank Tom for his foresight.

Funds to purchase the property came from the state’s Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program, the federal North American Wetlands Conservation Act, and Groundswell members. We hope to donate the property to the DNR as an addition to the wildlife refuge.

“Thank you Groundswell and Tom Bruss for this wetland addition to the Amy Pond Wildlife Refuge. Truly a bright spot in a challenged time for our wetland wildlife. Such a beautiful area, and sensitive to migratory paths!! Yay for the Good Guys!”

-Judith Hutchinson, Chair of Token Creek Conservancy