Apr. 15—EAU CLAIRE — An Eau Claire County farmer has agreed to pay a $30,000 penalty over the next five years and work to restore wetlands along Rock Creek in a settlement approved Wednesday by state legislators.
The settlement is for civil forfeiture cases the state Department of Justice brought against town of Drammen farmer Robert Knutson during 2019 in Eau Claire County Court.
One of the cases accuses Knutson of adding fill material to about 5.3 acres of wetlands on his land sometime after 2009 without a permit. The other civil complaint states that Knutson's work on his property changed the course of a portion of Rock Creek without getting state approval.
According to a complaint filed in the cases, a state Department of Natural Resources warden began an investigation of Knutson's property in 2016 after receiving an anonymous complaint. Using aerial photos and soil sampling, the investigation determined the former wetlands had been raised 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 feet in most places.
Knutson told the warden that he used his own heavy equipment to fill the wetlands with native soil and trucked-in sand because the muddy land caused problems for his cattle. Some of his cows got stuck in the mud near the creek and suffered heart attacks as they struggled to get free, he told the warden.
Knutson acknowledged he didn't get permits to do the work. The DNR tried to get him to remove the fill material and restore the wetlands. Knutson signed an agreement in 2017 to voluntarily do the restoration work.
After a November 2018 inspection found the work hadn't been started, state officials switched toward taking legal action.
Both cases against Knutson were filed in May 2019 and the two sides began negotiating. The state Department of Justice submitted a settlement agreement last October for the state Joint Finance Committee's approval.
According to an article from nonprofit news outlet Wisconsin Examiner, settlements for Knutson and an Outagamie County farmer had been lingering at the state Joint Finance Committee for six months. The committee met for less than 10 minutes on Wednesday to approve those two settlements and another, according to the article.
A copy of the settlement agreement provided by the state Department of Justice details what Knutson is required to pay, as well as work he is to do to remediate the wetlands.
Out of the $30,000 penalty, there are $17,000 in fines. The next largest piece is $4,800 in attorney's fees. The rest of the monetary settlement consists of various surcharges and court costs.