Back on March 5, in In town hall & letters sections, constituents sass back to state rep Steve Green about lots of stuff, we noted:
In the Park Rapids Enterprise, Shannon Geisen reported in Constituents flock to town hall meeting that those constituents grilled Steve Green, R-Fosston, over his support of anti-environment measures:
More than 70 constituents jammed into the Northwoods Bank community room Saturday to voice their concerns to their Minnesota legislators.
They traveled from Becker, Mahnomen, Clearwater, Beltrami and Hubbard counties. . . .
"A lot of you people out there think I'm anti-clean water. Believe me, I'm not," Green said, adding that his research finds water quality is greatly improving.
"To get to where there's no trend in pollution, you have to be improving," he stated, citing a Minnesota Pollution Control Agency report from 2014.
"Water cleans itself. We don't go in and put anything in to clean it. What we do is stop polluting it and it actually cleans itself," Green said. . . .
A retired biology teacher stood up to counter Green's assertion that there is less water pollution. Phosphorus levels are, in fact, getting worse in Minnesota's lakes and rivers, he said. . . .
Green's town hall has produced yet another letter in the Enterprise, Rep. Green's water statements misguided from Dick Kimball:
I am normally a pretty accepting person. However, when people who are supposedly in decision-making positions make statements that are perplexing, to say the least, with no factual backing, I feel I need an explanation. Such a statement was made at a town hall meeting awhile back by Rep. Steve Green concerning the "magic healing powers" of water. Not only was his statement that "water will heal itself" perplexing, it was downright comical. What science are you using, Steve? Or are you a member of the state and federal tribe that denies science? If we are to believe you, when toxic chemicals, farm waste, including fertilizers, or fossil-fuel by-products (oil or coal sludge) get into our aquifers, lakes, streams and wetlands, these polluted places will automatically and magically be healed. Or should we believe tremendous volumes of scientific research that say it will take decades, if not centuries, for these areas to be healed? Which is it?
Included in your statements that day, you also made mention of the buffer zones along water courses. You want these eliminated because you seem to believe that this is a property rights issue. You obviously believe that the public's right to clean water is superseded by your rights to do whatever right up to the water's edge or in areas of porous soil types. On this you are dead wrong
Your effort to dismantle the environmental controls of both MPCA and DNR is some of the most misguided and dangerous abuses of elected authority in recent memory. No amount of explanation will eliminate the fact that you truly and sincerely believe that you are right. So, which is it, Steve? Do you deny or believe proven science?
We'll continue to keep an eye out for Representative Green's sassy constituents, who certainly are getting lippy up there.
Photo: Rep. Steve Green, R-Fosston.
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