Dairy decision was a tough choice for Taylor County

It would have been easy for members of the Taylor County Land Conservation Committee to have said no or continued the delaying game for a proposed dairy’s nutrient management plan.
It would have been easy for committee members to hold their ground and insist North Breeze Dairy follow the book values for the nutrient management plan instead of sampling data from a similar concentrated animal feeding operation they run near Fond du Lac.
The vocal crowds of emotional residents who see the proposed dairy as an attack on their way of life and those wanting to make political hay over the issue would have supported such a stand. They would have applauded such an action by committee members and held them up to be heroes to the cause of keeping this perceived evil out of the pristine lands of Taylor County.
There are many reasons to oppose, in general principle, the concept of CAFOs such as the one proposed for the Town of Little Black. There are an equal number of reasons to view large-scale agricultural production as something that is necessary for dairy production to continue to meet national demands and to keep the dairy infrastructure viable into the future for all farms regardless of size.
It would have been easy for Taylor County to have been a bump in the road after the Department of Natural Resources gave a green light to using the lower numbers for the planning process, but would it have been the right thing? Would we want a government that relies on emotions over reason or do we want elected officials that are willing to yield on some points in order to gain concessions in others?
As it was, when the possibility of compromise was first suggested a month ago, there were many who objected in the halls of the Agricultural Service Center following the meeting and many more who called and voiced concerns to elected officials — some were civil, others were not. It is the right and obligation of citizens to let their elected leaders know what their opinions are and those citizens who made their views known should be commended.
Crafting public policy to generate the most cheering from the crowd seldom results in good public policy. Instead members of the committee crafted a compromise, one that allowed the review of the plan to continue and granted significant protections to residents of Taylor County in the form of limits on the size of the operation prior to when actual sampling data can be used from the proposed facility. This is something far less than what those who opposed the dairy wanted. Many of them would like to see the county take a firm stand and reject out of hand the permits and put a stop to the dairy. However, that is not how the system works nor should it work that way. At the end of the day, the purpose of government oversight and regulation is not to deny permits to those wanting to expand business operations, but to approve them — provided the rules are met and the overall good is protected.
Good public service is not about making the easy decisions. It is about making the necessary decisions and sometimes it is about compromise that seeks to provide the maximum long-term protection for Taylor County residents.
The Taylor County Land Conservation Committee made a tough but necessary call in crafting a compromise on the dairy’s nutrient management plan numbers and moved the review process forward.