Wisconsin faces losing over 515,000 acres of farmland by 2040, but organizations like Tall Pines Conservancy are fighting back. WUWM 89.7 FM reported on the Waukesha County land trust’s efforts to protect working farms through conservation easements.
Over 25 years, Tall Pines has protected 2,200 acres, including projects funded by the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program. Metz Preserve, supported by Stewardship dollars, protects a working farm along the Oconomowoc River next to Kettle Moraine State Forest. The story also highlighted the Zwieg family, who have farmed the same land for seven generations and became the first Wisconsin family to use the state’s PACE (Purchase of Agricultural Conservation Easements) program, permanently protecting their farm from development. The PACE program currently lacks funding, but conservation groups are pushing for its restoration alongside the reauthorization of the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program.
Former Tall Pines Executive Director Susan Buchanan explained why farmland protection is critical: “Not only for the economy—for the state of Wisconsin, farming and agriculture is a hundred-billion-dollar-plus industry with 470,000 jobs—but also for food security and climate mitigation.”
With funding decisions looming, Tall Pines’ work shows how conservation programs can address farmland protection and natural area preservation together.
Featured image by Gathering Waters staff, 2025
