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Executive Summary
At
last, springtime has come to Wisconsin. This season means many things
to us in the Badger State: it’s the time for cookouts, bike rides, and
beautiful days outdoors. But perhaps above all else, spring is the
start of long, lovely days on the lake. Fishing, swimming, boating:
these are the hallmarks of the warmer season in Wisconsin.
But
unfortunately, springtime is also the start of construction season,
which will put many of our waterways at great risk. By next fall, even
more houses, resorts, and condominium complexes will litter our
shorelines, endangering the lakes we love. At the current rate of
shoreland development, all privately owned lakeshores will be developed
as soon as the year 2015.
The
out-of-control development plaguing Wisconsin’s waterways threatens
water quality, wildlife habitat, natural scenic beauty, and recreation.
To address this problem, Wisconsin’s Department of Natural Resources
(DNR) has been working to update the statewide shoreland zoning rules
(NR 115), which regulate development on shorelines in unincorporated
areas of Wisconsin.
In
September of 2005, the DNR seemed ready move an update forward: the
Shoreland Management Advisory Committee had produced a stronger rule
draft; the public supported it overwhelmingly; and the DNR was planning
to send a final draft of the rule to the Natural Resources Board in
January.
But
months later at the start of a new construction season, we find that
our lakes remain unprotected. It is time for Governor Doyle to step in
and heed the will of his constituents by directing the DNR to move the
shoreland zoning rules forward as soon as possible.
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