Wisconsin losing cropland -5% gone!

[BeckyW]

Here's the news story:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070129/...nking_cropland

All the more reason to become increasingly self-sufficient and self-reliant IMHO.
BW

[travlnusa]

Living in WI, I see many reasons for this:

1) The dairy business is not was it once was, state loses 5-10 herds per month.

2) Hunting land is going at a record pace. While this keeps land from development, it does take it out of production.

3) CRP to a lesser extend. Most acres are already in, but more are added each year.

4) Urban sprawl in the SE Milwaukee area, S Central out of Madison, and NW from the Minneapolis/St Paul area.

On the other hand, it was reported not long ago that 49% of the state is forested. A number that has been holding tight for 10+ years.

[Rocky Fields]

Hey.

Travlnusa pretty well covered it, but I can add two more. For years, in some counties,
forested patches on some farms have been recorded as ag. When changing hands, the treed areas are recently being zoned forestry, especially in light of the USDA doing aerial surveys. Forested land is taxed higher than ag land. Also, most farms are unsurveyed. When you build a new farmhouse, a survey is required. Nine out of ten times there is less farmland than was first believed.

[Ford8N]

Originally Posted by travlnusa

Living in WI, I see many reasons for this:

1) The dairy business is not was it once was, state loses 5-10 herds per month.

2) Hunting land is going at a record pace. While this keeps land from development, it does take it out of production.

3) CRP to a lesser extend. Most acres are already in, but more are added each year.

4) Urban sprawl in the SE Milwaukee area, S Central out of Madison, and NW from the Minneapolis/St Paul area.

On the other hand, it was reported not long ago that 49% of the state is forested. A number that has been holding tight for 10+ years.

Good points but it is still scary: I always said that two things could spoil Wisconsin: overdevelopment and climate warming. What happened to snow???

[hillsidedigger]

Its not just Wisconsin.

Many parts of the U.S. and large parts of the world are losing cropland to development and also to erosion/desertification.

[Up North]

As the dairy cows move to the Great Plains, Wisconsin land will grow two cash crops - Corn and New Houses.
In the northern tier counties along Lake Superior, Hunting and recreational uses have driven land prices to the point where farming is being systematically choked out.

[sullen]

But the article was "biofuels, biofuels" and since Biofuels are a GM crop, I don't care. If they were growing something good, that would be different.

[arabian knight]

Originally Posted by sullen

But the article was "biofuels, biofuels" and since Biofuels are a GM crop, .

Soy Beans??????

[DaleK]

Originally Posted by sullen

But the article was "biofuels, biofuels" and since Biofuels are a GM crop, I don't care. If they were growing something good, that would be different.

Wow that's a pretty ridiculous leap to make. Ethanol (at the moment) doesn't care if the corn is GMO, conventional or organic, so it's up to the farmer. Same for biodiesel.

[Ford8N]

Originally Posted by sullen

But the article was "biofuels, biofuels" and since Biofuels are a GM crop, I don't care. If they were growing something good, that would be different.

So who cares if the corn is GM if you aren't eating it??

[wendys_goats]

It is a sad thing to see all the prime farm land being turned into Mcmansionvilles. I live close to the Fox Cities-Green Bay area and it is like a plague creeping towards me.