The purpose of a county Land and Water Resource Management (LWRM) Plan is to conserve long-term soil productivity, protect the quality of related natural resources, enhance water quality, and focus on severe soil erosion problems.
At the root of the county LWRM plan concept is the cooperation of all agencies and groups within the county that have a role in land and water resource management. This plan focuses on how a county’s Land and Water Conservation Department will work with the other agencies to implement agricultural performance standards (NR 151/ATCP 50), as well as address other local land and water resource management concerns.
The Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection (DATCP) requires that each county Land and Water Conservation Department (LWCD) have a 10-year LWRM plan (Ch. 92.10, WI Statutes) to receive grant funding for county staff and county administered cost-share grants that implement soil and water improvement projects.
Land and Water Resource Management (LWRM) Plans provide counties an opportunity to explain how they will meet the state performance standards and prohibitions (NR 151 and ATCP 50) to reduce runoff and protect water quality, as well as address other local land and water resource management concerns. The LWRM Plan provides the counties with the ability to develop local strategies to address the concerns; budget the limited staff and cost share dollars toward these concerns; provide for integration of programs and funding from all sources; and develop a variety of implementation tools.
The following county Land and Water Conservation Committees (LWCC) have worked with North Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (NCWRPC) to assist their LWCDs with facilitating the LWRM planning processes to create their county LWRM plans: