Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Dams Decommissioning topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Vernon County staff report NRCS work‑share changes, staff shifts and Knowles‑Nelson land applications; staff to seek DNR extension
Summary
County conservation staff told the Land and Water Conservation Committee that NRCS work‑share line items are under increased scrutiny even as reimbursement rates rose, Mark Erickson has left the department, and appraisals are underway for a Knowles‑Nelson application; staff said they will request a DNR extension on an ongoing dam project.
Vernon County Land and Water Conservation Committee members heard updates on federal reimbursements, staff reassignments and two Knowles‑Nelson land applications during the committee’s meeting.
County Conservationist Dave said Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) reviewers are auditing which line items count toward the county’s work‑share agreement, and that the reimbursement rate has been raised to roughly 75% from a prior 50% level. “We got about $16,558 last year from NRCS in that work‑share agreement, but we anticipate it’ll be roughly the same amount this year,” Dave said.
The committee was told that longtime staffer Mark Erickson is no longer with the department. Dave said Sammer has taken primary responsibility for nonmetallic‑mining oversight, while Casey and Matt will handle dam maintenance and related reporting. “Casey’s been doing a lot of the dam maintenance with Mark for quite some time,” Dave said; “Matt’s gonna be taking care of… committee reports and making sure that we’re on top of any more decommissioning.”
Committee members were updated on two Knowles‑Nelson Stewardship Program applications. Dave said the county submitted an application for property near “Duck Egg” and that appraisers will visit the site; he said the application for an “avalanche” property has not yet been submitted. “We turned in the application, and we’re getting the appraisal,” he said. Committee members discussed acreage; staff described the Duck Egg parcel as two 40‑acre tracts (80 acres total) pending appraisal results.
Dave also announced that the programmatic environmental impact statement for dam decommissioning is now linked on the Land and Water section of the county website for public review.
On an ongoing stream‑stabilization and dam project discussed later in the meeting, Matt (staff) said the contractor must complete a punch list and provide soil tests to confirm topsoil suitability for vegetation; if the county waits until the end of the growing season to judge revegetation success, Matt said staff will ask the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) for an extension beyond the current June 30 deadline. “We do need to ask the DNR for an extension,” Matt said.
Committee discussion touched on dam maintenance budgets and possible repair needs. A committee member noted that Mark Harris had identified about $40,000 in repairs for Melby Dam in 2025 and asked whether that remains on the table; staff said they would review past files before committing to repairs. Dave said major repairs would be brought back to the committee for a decision. “If there are big things that are like, this is a big‑ticket item, we’ll absolutely bring it to you guys,” he said.
No formal votes were taken on dam repairs at the meeting. Staff reported that, while some routine maintenance is funded from the existing structures budget, larger investments will be presented to the committee when costs are known.
The committee moved next to other agenda items after the conservationist report.
