Marathon County committee hears public opposition to large energy projects, forwards draft comprehensive plan to board

Marathon County’s Executive Committee on Monday opened a public hearing on the draft Marathon County Comprehensive Plan 2026, heard a series of public commenters urging stronger protections for farmland, wildlife and infrastructure, and voted unanimously to forward the draft and submitted comments to the full County Board for further consideration.

Conservation planning staff told the committee the draft had followed statutory public‑notice requirements and that two written comments had been received in advance. Staff said many of the comments focused on utility‑scale wind and solar and recommended changing draft language under the infrastructure goal from "actively review and engage in planning when allowed by state law" to "actively review and regulate when allowed by state law" so the plan would express the county’s policy preference if state authority changes.

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