ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - Gov. Mark Dayton heard from southwestern Minnesota farmers firsthand how his proposal to curb farmland runoff would affect their operations.
At a meeting in Worthington Thursday, many farmers urged the governor to broaden his approach. Dayton recently called for farmers to leave a 50-foot buffer strip along ditches, streams, ponds and lakes to improve water quality and animal habitat.
Tim Waibel, of New Ulm, sees it as a “land grab.” Waibel says taking part of his land will hurt him financially. Minnesota Public Radio (https://bit.ly/1BVqUsl ) reports farmers told Dayton his plan would take too many acres of cropland out of production.
Wabasso farmer Paul Sobocinski feels differently about Dayton’s proposal. Sobocinski predicted regulators could be even tougher on farmers if they don’t do something to reduce water pollution.
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Information from: Minnesota Public Radio News, https://www.mprnews.org
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