In the Field – The FDL County Land and Water Conservation Department

Article submitted by Melanie Kalmerton, Fond du Lac County Land & Water Conservation Dept.

With the field season soon approaching, we over at Fond du Lac County Land and Water Conservation Department wanted to take this opportunity to introduce you all to some of the friendly faces you’re most likely to see “in the field” in and around the Winnebago system this season!

Brad Murry, Conservation Technician:

Brad grew up on a dairy farm in northcentral WI, and still enjoys helping out at home on the farm whenever he gets the opportunity to. He went to school at UW-Platteville for Agronomy and a Minor in Ag-Business. Before working at Fond du Lac County, he worked as an Agronomist doing sales and consulting with farmers. The role of Conservation Technician is a new field of work for him, which requires many new skills and tools to be learned. His primary role is to assist landowners with design and implementation of environmental practices to help address resource concerns. His farming background and agronomy training is an invaluable asset to that role. What is most exciting to him about this role is that he enjoys working outside and feeling that he has the opportunity to have a positive impact on the environment for the community. He really enjoys problem solving in the field and helping find beneficial solutions for landowners in our county.

Melanie Kalmerton, Watershed Coordinator:

Melanie worked for 5 years with the Fond du Lac County Land and Water Conservation Department as a Conservation Technician prior to her new role as a Watershed Coordinator. Growing up in Oshkosh, and now living in rural Winnebago County on a small homestead, the Fox Valley and the Winnebago basin is home. Using the skills learned as a technician, combining that with the desire to learn more about cropping practices, and using her natural inclinations towards caring and communication, she is excited for this new role. As a Watershed Coordinator, her work is to help align local and regional efforts for the good of the landscape and the people who live, work and play here as well as to help coordinate and implement agricultural conservation programs and projects. She is excited about the creation and expansion of local programming and bringing re-envisioned conservation opportunities to landowners and farmers throughout the Winnebago Waterways Recovery Area. When she’s not chasing after her two kids, Melanie loves attempting to manage her ever-expanding cut flower and vegetable garden, as well as trying to keep up with her outdoor enthusiast husband as they do “all the things” hunting, fishing, and outdoors related.

Zach Laughlin, Watershed Outreach Coordinator:

Zach Laughlin joined Fond du Lac County Land and Water Conservation Department in July 2020. His position was made possible through the procurement of a Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Grant award received by the Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance, in partnership with Fond du Lac and Outagamie County. His work is focused primarily on the GLRI grant project underway in the Pipe Creek watershed. He has also been instrumental in accelerating our social media reach and content, as well as a critical team member on the development of and outreach for the 2021 Fond du Lac County Soil Health Program. Zach is most excited to be out in the field with the farmers—camera in hand, dust in the air and to have more people follow our work on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook!

Sage Tanck, Conservation Technician:

Sage Tanck grew up in the country outside of Greenleaf in Brown County, Wisconsin. Sage graduated from UW-Platteville, with a major in Reclamation Environmental Conservation and a focus on Environmental Engineering. Before starting with Fond du Lac County Land and Water Conservation Department, she worked as an intern for both Door County Land and Water Conservation Department doing AIS work & Clean Boats, Clean Waters and for Northern Ecological Services, a private ecological consulting firm, maintaining prairies and wetlands through prescribed burns and vegetation management. As a Conservation Technician, she has taken a lead role on the Pipe Creek Streambank TRM grant project, and facilitated meetings and new projects with other landowners in the Pipe Creek watershed. This work requires completing site surveys, designing practices, creating project construction plans, and other aspects of project management. She also managed construction of multiple conservation projects that were built in 2020. Her favorite part about this position is seeing the before and after- watching a site transform from a resource concern to a beautiful, healthy landscape. In her free time, Sage loves spending time with and going on hikes with her puppy, Remy and loves ice fishing and snowboarding among other outdoor activities!

We are looking forward to a productive and successful 2021, and are excited to continue working with the citizens of Fond du Lac County for the benefit of their land and our shared resources.