Bluestem recommends Doug Grow's column, How the MPCA’s Citizens’ Board did itself in, at MinnPost, although we do think that this passage overlooks a bit of history:
But it was the Citizens' Board that took the harder hit. By saying “no” to Riverview, the board had said “no” to big ag.
In the Minnesota Legislature, it’s an unpopular thing to say no to big ag. Republican lawmakers, with approving nods from DFLers from the Iron Range, were angered by the board’s independence and quietly went about the business of writing the Citizens’ Board out of existence in the environment-agriculture budget bill. Though Gov. Mark Dayton vetoed the bill, he has indicated, in the name of compromise, he will accept the language that eliminates the board in exchange for changes in other parts of the bill.
“There were no hearings on this,” said Steve Morse, who is a former legislator, a former high-ranking official in the Department of Natural Resources and who now is the head of the Minnesota Environmental Partnership. “As far as I can tell, there was no case ever made for why this should happen. If it does happen, it’s a happy day for those who pollute.” . . .
For his part, Dayton hasn’t been clear as to why he’s willing to let the Citizens’ Board disappear from the public arena with little more than a whimper. But in fairness to Dayton, few seem to be making a big issue of the erasure of a unique body that has been around since the MPCA was created, in 1967.
That's not exactly how it happened.
When the informal (and unarchived) Senate Rural Task Force took testimony on about changing the permitting process, we reported that Julie Rosen Co-founder of Senate Rural Task Force (est. 2014) attack[ed] MPCA Citizen Board (est. 1967).
This prompted the Land Stewardship Project to issue an action alert on December 4, 2014: Local Control & Environmental Review of Factory Farms Under Attack Even Before the MN Legislative Session Begins. It was our understanding that the Task Force members received many emails and calls.
In the Senate, Environment committee chair John Marty held an informational hearing about the environmental review process on January 29 as we reported MN Senate Environment & Energy Committee to hold hearing on purpose of environmental review.
During the hearing, Minnesota Farmers Union President Doug Peterson defend[ed] MPCA Citizens Board. Citizens from western Minnesota traveled to St. Paul to testify. Our post includes video of those testifying. Unlike the informal Senate Rural Task Force hearing--remember it wasn't recorded, nor were minutes kept--January's hearing was official Senate business.
That's right: people spoke up for the Board--and they continued to do so, in asking Dayton for the veto, in a gathering at Dayton's residence. The Strib's Jon Tevlin wrote it up in Minnesota Legislature's cone of silence makes for a bad environmental bill.
Those who wanted to eliminate the Board waited until the last minute to slip the measure into the conference report.
Dozens of environmental groups asked for the veto.
What's more, 23 state senators have sent a letter to the Governor this week asking for the Citizens Board to stay, while environmental groups continue to ask for its retention.
Grow must have missed all that--though he gets the part of about politicians not being able to say no to Big Ag in Minnesota.
Photo: James Kanne's cows in Renville County. Kanne spoke in favor of the board at the January hearing.
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