The Minnesota Pollution and MDH have submitted comments calling for an EIS on the proposed
Yoder & Dabelstein mines in Winona Co. The DNR is also expected to issue a response soon as well.
Mary Juhl reported in yesterday's Winona Daily News:
Winona County began accepting comments in late December, after re-publishing the two EAWs in November because an error in the process was discovered. Comments were to be sent to the county, not to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, as the drafts had originally indicated. The county is required to respond to all comments.
On Tuesday, the Winona County Board of Commissioners scheduled a Feb. 21 public hearing on the reviews; the joint hearing will be held by both the county board and the county’s planning commission. According to county administrator Duane Hebert, a public hearing is not required, but the board has the power to schedule one. The hearing may be held at a larger venue than the Winona County Government Center; a final location and time will be set at a later date.
LSP's Johanna Rupprecht looked at the whole hot mess in Winona County frac sand update: county officials take mulligans on Yoder and Dabelstein EAW.
As Dale Schauer noted in a letter to the Winona Daily News:
Last fall, Winona County determined that an Environmental Awareness Worksheet (EAW) needs to be completed before a mining permit for frac sand would be considered. Accordingly, the mine proposer submits a competed EAW to the county. The county reviews it and then there is a 30-day period for the public to comment.
EAWs for the proposed Yoder and Dablestein mines were submitted last fall but were found to be incomplete. The mine proposers resubmitted EAWs over the holidays, and Christmas Eve was the start date for the 30-day public comment period.
State agencies were also asked to comment.
Here's the letter from the MPCA:
MPCA-Winona-Dabelstein-Yoder EAWs Comment Letter 2 4 13 by Sally Jo Sorensen
The MDH letter:MDH EAW Comment Letter by Sally Jo Sorensen
Photo: A protester in Winona.
If you enjoyed reading this post, consider giving a donation via paypal:
Comments