CREP, Farmland Preservation, Wildlife Damage Abatement & Claims

Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) 

Landowners in Dunn County have been eligible for CREP (Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program) since January of 2002. Dunn County is one of fifty-two Wisconsin counties selected for CREP because it is considered a major sediment source to the Mississippi River. The program provides financial incentives to landowners who agree to idle cropland or pastureland adjacent to streams, rivers, or wetlands.

 

Farmland Preservation Program (Working Lands Initiative)

The Wisconsin Working Lands Initiative was signed into law in 2009 and is comprised of the following three programs:

  • Farmland Preservation Program

  • Agricultural Enterprise Area Program

  • Purchase of Agricultural Conservation Easement Program

The 2011 Wisconsin Act 32, the Biennial Budget Bill, eliminated the collection of a conversion fee when land is re-zoned out of a certified farmland preservation zoning district.

The goal of the Working Lands Initiative is to preserve areas of significant agricultural land. To be eligible for tax credits, the land in question must either be located in a district zoned for exclusive agriculture or be included in a Farmland Preservation Agreement. Existing agreements (prior to July 1, 2009) will be eligible until they expire, but new agreements will not be issued unless the property is located within an established Agricultural Enterprise Area.

Dunn County's Farmland Preservation Plan, adopted in 1982, was updated in 2017. We currently have three townships under exclusive agricultural zoning (Lucas, Grant, Wilson) and 45 existing Farmland Preservation Agreements that are eligible for Working Lands Initiative (WLI) tax credits.

 

Wildlife Damage Abatement and Claims Program

If you are a producer of agricultural crops and are experiencing damage to your crops from deer, geese, turkey, or bear, you may be provided the necessary technical and/or operational assistance in identifying, abating, controlling, and assessing damages to agricultural interests.

Since 1994, Dunn County has contracted with the USDA-Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), Wildlife Services, for wildlife damage abatement and claims services.

You may contact them at 1-800-228-1368 if you are experiencing damage to agricultural crops.