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BACKUS-Cass County's share of the State Aid Road Allotment, commonly known as the township gas tax, increased $18,350 this year.

The county's total distribution this year will be $504,952. Each township that has town roads receives a share of that fund. It is distributed each February, based on gasoline taxes the state collected the prior year.

Auditor-Treasurer Sharon Anderson reported earlier this month that efforts so far to lower water levels in Ditch 9 using funds collected from properties benefitting from the installation of the ditch 100 years ago have lowered the ditch water level 3.5 feet.

So far, ditch cleaning and beaver and beaver dam removal has been done mainly on the east end. In 2016, further work will be done on the west end of the ditch.

Anderson obtained board approval to spend $3,924 from a recorder's office fund to make changes to the county's security system to protect credit card payers who pay for county services such as property taxes by credit card. The county earlier hired a firm to look for possible security breach problems or potential problems.

This would correct potential problems that firm found.

The county board referred to the county planning commission a letter from a concerned permanent Byron Township resident who is a neighbor of a proposed feedlot for 998.4 animal units of hogs.

In his letter, Walter C. Sjolund expresses concern that current Minnesota Pollution Control Agency standards for setback for feedlots from lakes and residences may not be as stringent as the county's was in a 1999 county ordinance.

Following a public hearing, the county board voted to recommend the state's Minnesota Investment Fund should extend its loan term requirements one year for the owners of Minnesota American Surplus and Manufacturing Inc.

That firm owns the Wilson Township manufacturing facility just south of Pine River where Ice Castle fish house camping trailers are manufactured.

Lisa Stenzel, office manager, and Jesse Drexler, son of the owner, reported the firm is current on its loan payments, but has been unable to meet the loan agreement terms to hire by this date the full number of 20 employees earning $12.45 per hour.

Drexler said the lack of good ice for fishermen this winter meant fewer sales. The firm currently has 16 employees working at the Pine River plant, but only 12 have the experience needed to qualify for the stated wage.

Land Commissioner Joshua Stevenson obtained board approval to permit Minnesota DNR to burn a bog area along the north shore of Laura Lake in Remer Township this summer when the DNR burns some of its own property in that area. The site is on county administered land.

Burning in early spring prevents brush from encroaching on meadow grass and wetland grasses that are more beneficial to wildlife in that area, he said.

Michael McGee, contract medical examiner for Cass, reported there were 80 deaths in the county in 2015. He accepted for examination 32 of those cases. Private physicians ruled on cause of death for the rest.

McGee, who is Ramsey County medical examiner and has offices in that county, reported he completed autopsies on 28 decedents, did an external examination with toxicology on another and signed three death certificates without examination.

Of the total who died, McGee found 62 died of natural causes, 11 from accidents, four from suicide, one from homicide and one each were undetermined or still pending.

Mississippi Headwaters Board Executive Director Tim Terrill described for the county board how that agency is using a $3.15 million state Outdoor Heritage grant to purchase property and register conservation easements from willing landowners along the river and its tributaries.

Counties and townships give their input on each proposal before a site is purchased or placed into a conservation easement, he said.

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