Andy Holschbach has lived in the Sheboygan River Basin for over twenty years and been a board member for over ten years. He wants to help improve and protect our local land and water resources. It is important that we do all we can as a community and being on the board provides that community approach. His roots in the basin started upon getting married to his wife because she grew up in the basin and they both have raised three kids there. Andy jokes that he has explored “a lot of it” when referring to how much of the basin he has seen. If he could move anywhere in the basin it would be somewhere surrounding the Kettle Moraine State Forest (as shown by the picture below with his dog).
“If we can get our soils healthy, water can better infiltrate into the soil resulting in less runoff.”
Currently a board member, he has served as treasurer for many years where he helped manage the various grants and other funds coming into the organization. Initially he started by helping to develop an awards program to recognize those in the watershed being good land stewards. Now he works to improve water quality as part of his role with the Ozaukee County Land & water Management Department. Through this position he improves soil health which is a major initiate within the agricultural community. “If we can get our soils healthy, water can better infiltrate into the soil resulting in less runoff. Farmers can have less inputs and be more profitable.” He works closely with the Clean Farm Families, a producer-led group and the Ozaukee County Demonstration Farm Network to help provide soil health workshops, field days, and establish demonstration plots.
“Water to me means ‘life.’ no water, no life. water is that precious resource that we often take too much for granted.”
Andy’s favorite contribution was recently helping to develop the “Ozaukee County Soil Health Initiative” which is to provide assistance to the Clean Farm Families, Demonstration Farm Network and farmers throughout the county promoting soil health. Our county with funding from the Fund for Lake Michigan has been able to purchase an interceder planter which converts to a no-till drill which is available to farmer to plant cover crops. He says they also purchased a roller/crimper which farmers can use to crimp goers and plant green — resulting in less herbicide usage.
