Agriculture
Ken Barnett served as the Interim Ag Educator (40%) for Lincoln County from mid- July 2011 through the end of December 2011. The Lincoln County Land Information, Conservation and University Extension committee approved moving forward with the process to extend funding for the interim position into 2012 at their November 15th committee meeting. On December 6, 2011, a motion of the Lincoln County Personnel Committee to extend funding for interim agriculture staffing failed. Therefore, as of January 1, 2012, Lincoln County Cooperative Extension no longer has the capacity to provide agricultural educational services to our residents.
On January 11th the Extension committee approved refilling of shared position with Marathon County with the position funded 20% by Marathon County, 20% by Lincoln County and 60% by UW Extension. At their March 5th meeting the Lincoln County Personnel Committee approved filling the position. The next step in the process for filling the position is to secure the approval of the Lincoln County Board of Supervisors at their March 20, 2012 County Board meeting to be held at 6 p.m. in the William Buedingen Training Room, W6147 State Road 86 in Tomahawk. We are hopeful that the County Board will support filling the shared position and we will then be able to move forward with the hiring process having an individual in place this summer.
As a faculty member of the University of Wisconsin-Extension, employed with Lincoln and Marathon Counties, the Agricultural Educator is a leader in accessing and applying research findings in agricultural and natural resources to meet identified educational needs and interests of county individuals, families, businesses, organizations and communities. By investing in the Shared Lincoln/Marathon County Agricultural Educator, Lincoln County residents would have:
- Direct access to a highly qualified local educator/agent and the knowledge of over 100 University of Wisconsin System agricultural specialists to help address current and emerging needs.
- Individual agriculture and horticulture business counseling.
- Countywide promotion of a variety of agricultural economic development strategies that create and cultivate new markets for products.
- Environmental quality through help with planning and implementing effective nutrient management programs and other strategies promoting stewardship of the land.
- Promotion of food quality and safety through advice on effective growing practices.
- Education on diseases that may threaten local crops and farm animals.
- Technical expertise on how farmers can access programs and grants that promote effective farming practices.
The annual cost to Lincoln County for this Shared Agricultural Educator would be an estimated $13,050 per year (20% of the cost). Marathon County would contribute that same amount (20%) and the University would contribute $39,150 (60%). (Note: Figures are based on an annual salary of $45,000 per year plus benefits.) . For a homeowner in Lincoln County paying property taxes on a house valued at $100,000 the cost for having this position is slightly over a nickel per year.
If the position is approved, Lincoln County Cooperative Extension will again have the capacity to provide agricultural educational services to our residents. Taxpayers in Lincoln County contribute to the infrastructure of Cooperative Extension (specialists and other state-wide resources) through their state and federal taxes. These services can only be accessed locally when counties partner with the Cooperative Extension to fund local staffing. Given that the need for services exceeds the availability of resources, if the decision is made not to fill the position the funding set aside at the state level for Lincoln County Agriculture will be redirected to other counties who are eager to partner financially with Cooperative Extension to support local staffing.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Jim Alber, Chair of the Lincoln County Land Information, Conservation and University Extension Committee at 715-966-0625 or Debbie Moellendorf, 4-H Youth Development Educator/Department Head for Extension in Lincoln County at 715-539-1077.
