This is your WCQM Daily News Roundup for 98Q Country 98.3 FM and Trail Mix 103.1 FM and 980 AM WPFB in Park Falls.
Now a look at Northwood's news, I'm Maddie Schaefer.
High fuel prices are adding to the financial pressure on Wisconsin farmers as harvest season gets underway.
Civic media's James Kelly has more.
A number of Chippewa Valley residents gathered at a local farm in Eau Claire on Monday morning to highlight the struggles farmers across the state are facing ahead of the November election.
The event specifically noted the cost of diesel fuel topping $6 a gallon for the first time ever as farmers enter the harvest season, the time of the year when they're using the most fuel on average.
George Paulzine, a fourth generation farmer in the region, summed up how much of an impact those additional costs are causing for the average farm.
The average dairy farm in Wisconsin.
These are the University of Wisconsin numbers.
I got them just this morning.
The additional cost is between $45,000 and $60,000 a year on the average farm in Wisconsin.
That's just got to be eaten.
And the price of milk didn't go up.
It's $45,000.
There's not too many people that work out in the business world that could take a $45,000 hit and pay.
In addition to the short-term cost increases caused by tariffs implemented over the last two years, Paul Zeen also highlighted the long-term struggles the agricultural industry will face as it works to rebuild export relationships that have been broken.
A
lot of people in the dairy industry and in the marketing ends of things that have spent their entire career.
developing these industry markets and world markets.
And we live in a global market.
I don't care what anybody says.
We cannot isolate ourselves.
And to rebuild and fix what has been broken will take some time.
It will.
One administration change isn't going to change the whole thing overnight.
These things take time.
The rally was organized by Chippewa Valley Indivisible.
That's James Kelly, and for Northwood's News, I'm Maddie Schaefer.
For Civic Media News, I'm Connie Feldman.
A UW-Madison physics professor has just put the Badger State on the global map.
Professor Francis Halson is the latest Nobel Prize winner in physics.
UW-Madison officials say Halson was honored for his understanding of the astrophysical particles known as neutrinos, which are produced by the universe's most energetic events.
Halson credits the university in large part for the award, saying he's fortunate to be at UW where unconventional ideas can thrive.
He said it's hard to imagine his project happening anywhere else.
Halson is the first Nobel Prize winner from Wisconsin in nearly four decades.
Nine wolves were killed up north in Wisconsin by federal wildlife officials following what the Wisconsin DNR says were repeated threats to human safety.
According to Wisconsin Public Radio, the incidents were reported in rural Price County.
The wolves are trapped and euthanized.
Before the wolves were killed, the agency says it recommended several non-lethal measures, including removing potential bait, using noise to scare the wolves away, and increasing activity around the area.
But the DNR says those efforts didn't work and the wolves became more used to people and
less likely to be scared away.
Wolves have come into conflict with rural and farming communities in Wisconsin killing livestock and pets and triggering a campaign to restart Wisconsin's wolf hunt.
But the wolf is also a powerful symbol to many of Wisconsin's tribal populations who condemned the recent wolf killings.
The debate over whether wolves should be hunted is a hot topic in Wisconsin and the laws are confusing.
Right now, gray wolves are once again federally protected in Wisconsin, although there was a wolf hunt in 2021.
That's because Wisconsin is
legally required to have a hunt if gray wolves are removed from the endangered species list, which they were briefly in 2020.
Just a year later, wolves were back on the federal endangered species list.
But now, just a few days ago, in fact, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to take wolves back off the list nationwide.
Nearly 100 Wisconsin workers will be out of a job less than a month before Christmas Day, as a Milwaukee steel plant announces layoffs.
According to a press release, Maynard Steel has experienced what they call unforeseeable business circumstances, forcing them to fire all 77 workers at its Milwaukee facility.
In addition to being laid off on December 4th, workers' health care benefits will also end that day.
Wisconsin's controversial anti-union law, Act 10, faces a critical showdown this fall to the November 3rd election and a lawsuit heading to the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
Passed under former Republican Governor Scott Walker, the law severely restricted collective bargaining for most public sector employees.
Public sentiment remains deeply divided.
According to a recent Marquette University Law School poll, 54% of registered voters supported restoring collective bargaining to pre-act 10 standards.
while 43 prefer to keep the current law in place.
The debate showcases a sharp divide between Wisconsin's two candidates for governor also.
Republican Tom Tiffany strongly defends the anti-union law, maintaining that it protects taxpayers, while Democrat David Crowley supports a full repeal of Act 10 and the state's right to work laws, arguing that all public workers deserve the right to negotiate fair wages and working conditions through collective bargaining.
Madison's interim independent police monitor is pushing back against a city employment review that accuses her of ignoring multiple rules and delaying key duties.
Arameek Glass described the review to News 3 Now as illegitimate, saying only the police civilian oversight board has the authority over her position.
However, Common Council President Sabrina Madison and former Alders defend the report, citing emails where Glass allegedly claimed she only follows city rules when comfortable doing so.
ongoing dispute highlights growing friction over civilian law enforcement oversight in Madison.
And that's your state news update.
I'm Connie Feldman for Civic Media News.
It's the Padres and the crew again.
Hi, I'm Mike Clemens with sports baseball the Brewers and Padres in game four tonight in the best of five series for their National League playoff series the Brewers losing four to three last night Milwaukee's now lost playoff games on the road 12 times in a row over the years that ties a major league record Pat Murphy.
Yeah, it's tough to win on the road and playoff situation obviously We've done a pretty good job at home.
I'd say but you know, you're you're right.
It's um
Yeah, it's never fun.
The Padres, Manny Machado, getting another chance to play in front of their hometown crowd at Petco Park.
You know, we play well at home, sleeping in your own bed, coming to this ballpark, the energy that these fans bring.
You know, there was a moment there that we were kind of down.
It was kind of like a little battle.
You know, and once we kind of got that, we scratched away some good at bats, the crowd got into it and, you know, we feed off of that, man.
We feed off of that energy.
NFL, the Packers getting ready to host the Bears on Sunday.
The Wisconsin Badgers football team has the week off.
They travel to UCLA.
next week with Sports on Mike Clemens.
It is going to be a little cooler today but still a gorgeous day with sunshine and a high in the upper 60s to near 70 this afternoon.
Tonight to mostly clear we're going to drop into the upper 30s to low 40s tomorrow.
Mostly sunny with a high in the low to mid 60s.
I'm meteorologist Sean Cable.
That's your WCQM and WPFP Daily News Roundup from Civic Media.
Subscribe to this podcast on Spotify, Apple, or wherever you find your podcasts.
Find more news at 98qcountry.com or trailmix.fm.