EAGLE, Wis. — The primary funding source for land conservation and protection in Wisconsin is hanging in the balance.

Republicans and Democrats have been unable to come to a compromise on how to fund the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program, which has been around for more than 30 years.

The Waukesha County Land Conservancy has protected roughly 1,000 acres of land, thanks to the fund. The Chapman-Trupke Preserve, next to Old World Wisconsin in Eagle, is one of 17 properties acquired and protected by the conservancy.

“We worked with our constituents to fundraise to acquire the Chapman-Trupke Preserve,” said Allison Romero, executive director of the Waukesha County Land Conservancy. “But Knowles-Nelson Stewardship funds were a huge part of helping us have the ability to get this property.”

Romero said if the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program is not funded anymore, protecting natural areas in the state will become much harder.

“These are public lands,” she said.” These are for everybody to use. There are no fees to come out here. It’s for the community today and tomorrow.”

Helen Holtz, the land management director for the Waukesha County Land Conservancy, said the Chapman-Trupke Preserve has a rare oak and prairie ecosystem. Money from the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program has helped them build a one-and-a-half-mile trail around the preserve, do controlled burns to improve habitats, and remove invasive species like buckthorn.

“Buckthorn is the first one to get leaves and the last one to lose its leaves, and in these rare ecosystems, they require a lot of sun and buckthorn creates a shade canopy and it shades out all of native wildflowers, grasses and edges,” said Holtz. “It creates a corn field rather than an ecosystem.”

The Waukesha County Land Conservancy is just one of about 70 organizations that the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program supports. Gathering Waters—Wisconsin’s Alliance for Land Trusts, is another. Charles Carlin helps lead that group and shared his frustration with state lawmakers.

“Our politicians have chosen not to invest in our state parks or our public lands, so we are facing a billion-dollar maintenance backlog just on state properties alone,” said Carlin. “Now, to turn around and say we are going to spend zero dollars? You’re just digging that hole that much deeper. Communities, especially in southern Wisconsin, are growing rapidly. Folks that move here want to have places to go outside and play, and enjoy with their families, and if they are going to come to Wisconsin and stick around, we need to deliver that.”

There is still a chance the legislature reconvenes to vote on a property tax bill—allowing lawmakers to add items like Knowles-Nelson to the docket.

But if lawmakers fail to act by June 30, funding for the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program will end.