piers109uk/MN-Statutes huggingface dataset:
115A.915 LEAD ACID BATTERIES; LAND DISPOSAL PROHIBITED.
A person may not place a lead acid battery in mixed municipal solid waste or dispose of a lead acid battery after January 1, 1988. A person who violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor. This section may be enforced by the agency pursuant to sections 115.071 and 116.072.
115A.935 SOLID WASTE GENERATED OUTSIDE MINNESOTA.
No person shall transport into or deposit in this state, for the purpose of processing or disposal, solid waste that was generated in another state, unless the waste:
(1) meets all the solid waste management regulations of the state in which it was generated; and
(2) contains none of the items specifically banned from mixed municipal solid waste in this state, including waste tires, motor and vehicle fluids and filters, waste lead acid batteries, yard waste, major appliances, and any other item specifically banned from the waste stream under this chapter.
115A.932 MERCURY PROHIBITION.
(a) A person may not place mercury or a mercury-containing device or product, as defined under section 116.92, subdivision 10, from which the mercury has not been removed for reuse or recycling:
(1) in solid waste; or
(2) in a wastewater disposal system.
(b) A person may not knowingly place mercury or a mercury-containing device or product, as defined under section 116.92, subdivision 10, from which the mercury has not been removed for reuse or recycling:
(1) in a solid waste processing facility; or
(2) in a solid waste disposal facility.
(c) A fluorescent or high-intensity discharge lamp must be recycled by delivery of the lamp to a lamp recycling facility, as defined in section 116.93, subdivision 1, or to a facility that collects and stores lamps for the purpose of delivering them to a lamp recycling facility, including, but not limited to, a household hazardous waste collection or recycling facility, retailer take-back and utility provider program sites, or other sites designated by an electric utility under section 216B.241, subdivisions 2 and 4.
(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b), a violation of subdivision 1 is subject to enforcement under sections 115.071 and 116.072.
(b) A violation of subdivision 1 by a generator of household hazardous waste, as defined in section 115A.96, is not subject to enforcement under section 115.071, subdivision 3.
(c) An administrative penalty imposed under section 116.072 for a violation of subdivision 1 by a generator of household hazardous waste, as defined in section 115A.96, may not exceed $700.
115A.931 YARD WASTE; PROHIBITION.
(a) Except as authorized by the agency, in the metropolitan area after January 1, 1990, and outside the metropolitan area after January 1, 1992, a person may not place yard waste:
(1) in mixed municipal solid waste;
(2) in a disposal facility; or
(3) in a resource recovery facility except for the purposes of reuse, composting, or cocomposting.
(b) MS 2008 [Renumbered 115A.03, subd 38]
(c) On or after January 1, 2010, a person may not place yard waste or source-separated compostable materials generated in a metropolitan county in a plastic bag delivered to a transfer station or compost facility unless the bag meets all the specifications in ASTM Standard Specification for Compostable Plastics (D6400). For purposes of this paragraph, "metropolitan county" has the meaning given in section 473.121, subdivision 4, and "ASTM" has the meaning given in section 296A.01, subdivision 6.
(d) A person who immediately empties a plastic bag containing yard waste or source-separated compostable materials delivered to a transfer station or compost facility and removes the plastic bag from the transfer station or compost facility is exempt from paragraph (c).
(e) Residents of a city of the first class that currently contracts for the collection of yard waste are exempt from paragraph (c) until January 1, 2013, if, by that date, the city implements a citywide source-separated compostable materials collection program using durable carts.
115A.936 CONSTRUCTION DEBRIS AS COVER MATERIAL PROHIBITED.
(a) Construction debris or residuals from processed construction debris containing any amount of gypsum shall not be managed as cover material at disposal facilities unless:
(1) residual material is managed in an industrial or construction and demolition disposal facility equipped with a liner and leachate collection system;
(2) residual material is not mechanically pulverized or size-reduced prior to processing, screening, or application;
(3) a maximum effort is made to remove gypsum from the waste prior to processing, screening, or application;
(4) residual material is mixed at a ratio of one part soil to one part residual material prior to application; and
(5) the disposal facility does not accept any amount of cover material greater than what is operationally necessary.
(b) For the purposes of this section, "residual material" means construction debris or residuals from processed construction debris containing any amount of gypsum.
115A.941 SOLID WASTE; REQUIRED COLLECTION.
(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b), each city, and town described in section 368.01, with a population of 1,000 or more, and any other town with a population of 5,000 or more shall ensure that every residential household and business in the city or town has solid waste collection service. To comply with this section, a city or town may organize collection, provide collection, or require by ordinance that every household and business has a contract for collection services. An ordinance adopted under this section must provide for enforcement.
(b) A city or town described in paragraph (a) may exempt a residential household or business in the city or town from the requirement to have solid waste collection service if the household or business ensures that an environmentally sound alternative is used.
(c) To the extent practicable, the costs incurred by a city or town under this section must be incorporated into the collection system or the enforcement mechanisms adopted under this section by the city or town.
115A.951 TELEPHONE DIRECTORIES.
For the purposes of this section, a "telephone directory" means a printed list of residential, governmental, or commercial telephone service subscribers or users, or a combination of subscribers or users, that contains more than 7,500 listings and is distributed to the subscribers or users.
A person may not place a telephone directory:
(1) in solid waste;
(2) in a disposal facility; or
(3) in a resource recovery facility, except a recycling facility.
A person may not distribute a telephone directory to any person in this state unless the telephone directory:
(1) is printed on paper that is recyclable;
(2) is printed with inks that contain no heavy metals or other toxic materials; and
(3) is bound with materials that pose no unreasonable barriers to recycling of the directory.
Each publisher or distributor of telephone directories shall:
(1) provide for the collection and delivery to a recycler of waste telephone directories;
(2) inform recipients of directories of the collection system; and
(3) submit a report to the agency by August 1 of each year that specifies the percentage of distributed directories collected as waste directories by distribution area and the locations where the waste directories were delivered for recycling and that verifies that the directories have been recycled.
115A.945 VISIBLE COSTS; SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT.
Any political subdivision that provides or pays for the costs of collection or disposal of solid waste shall, through a billing or other system, make the prorated share of those costs for each solid waste generator visible and obvious to the generator.
115A.95 RECYCLABLE MATERIALS.
(a) Recyclable materials must be delivered to the appropriate materials processing facility as outlined in rules of the agency or any other facility permitted to recycle or compost the materials.
(b) A disposal facility or a resource recovery facility that is composting mixed municipal solid waste, burning waste, or converting waste to energy or to materials for combustion may not accept source-separated recyclable materials, and a solid waste collector or transporter may not deliver source-separated recyclable materials to such a facility, except for recycling or transfer to a recycler, unless the commissioner determines that no other person is willing to accept the recyclable materials.
115A.952 RETAIL SALE OF PROBLEM MATERIALS; UNIFORM LABELING AND CONSUMER INFORMATION.
The agency may adopt rules to identify products that are used primarily for personal, family, or household purposes and that constitute a problem material or contain a problem material as defined in section 115A.03, subdivision 24e. The rules may also prescribe a uniform label to be affixed by retailers of identified products as provided in subdivision 4. Packaging that is recyclable or made from recycled material shall not constitute a problem material.
The commissioner of agriculture may adopt rules to provide consumer information and retail handling practices for pesticides, as defined in section 18B.01, subdivision 18; fertilizers, plant amendments, and soil amendments, as defined in section 18C.005, subdivisions 11, 25, and 33; and wood preservatives.
The agency and the commissioner of agriculture shall prepare and the agency shall supply to retailers, without charge to the retailers, the labels and informational materials required to comply with subdivision 4. Informational materials must include specific instructions on environmentally sound ways to use identified products and to handle them when the products or their containers are discarded.
A person who sells or offers for sale at retail any product that is identified pursuant to rules of the agency adopted under subdivision 1 or under rules of the commissioner of agriculture under subdivision 2 shall:
(1) affix a uniform label as prescribed by the rules in a prominent location upon or near the display area of the product. If the adjacent display area is a shelf, the label shall be affixed to the price information for the product on the shelf;
(2) maintain and prominently display informational materials supplied by the agency at the location where identified products covered by the materials are sold or offered for sale; and
(3) comply with the handling practices required under subdivision 2.
115A.956 SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL; PROBLEM MATERIALS.
The agency shall develop a plan that designates problem materials and available capacity for processing and disposal of problem materials including household hazardous waste that should not be in mixed municipal solid waste. In developing the plan, the agency shall consider relevant regional characteristics and the impact of problem materials on specific processing and disposal technologies.
After the agency certifies that sufficient processing and disposal capacity is available, but no later than November 15, 1992, the agency shall develop a plan for separating problem materials from mixed municipal solid waste, collecting the problem materials, and transporting the problem materials to a processing or disposal facility and may by rule prohibit the placement of the designated problem materials in mixed municipal solid waste.
115A.9561 MAJOR APPLIANCES.
A person may not:
(1) place major appliances in mixed municipal solid waste; or
(2) dispose of major appliances in or on the land or in a solid waste processing or disposal facility. The agency may enforce this section pursuant to sections 115.071 and 116.072.
(a) Major appliances must be recycled or reused. Each county shall ensure that its households have the opportunity to recycle used major appliances. For the purposes of this section, recycling includes:
(1) the removal of capacitors that may contain PCBs;
(2) the removal of ballasts that may contain PCBs;
(3) the removal of chlorofluorocarbon refrigerant gas; and
(4) the recycling or reuse of the metals, including mercury.
(b) To ensure that the materials removed from a major appliance are not introduced into the environment, an activity described in paragraph (a), clauses (1) to (3), must be conducted in a closed facility if the activity is conducted within 500 feet from the ordinary high-water level of a water basin that is a public water, as those terms are described in section 103G.005, or of a watercourse identified by the public waters inventory under section 103G.201.
115A.9565 CATHODE-RAY TUBE PROHIBITION.
Effective July 1, 2006, a person may not place in mixed municipal solid waste an electronic product containing a cathode-ray tube.
115A.961 HOUSEHOLD BATTERIES; COLLECTION, PROCESSING, AND DISPOSAL.
For the purposes of this section, "household batteries" means disposable or rechargeable dry cells commonly used as power sources for household or consumer products including, but not limited to, nickel-cadmium, alkaline, mercuric oxide, silver oxide, zinc oxide, lithium, and carbon-zinc batteries, but excluding lead acid batteries.
(a) The commissioner, in consultation with other state agencies, political subdivisions, and representatives of the household battery industry, may develop household battery programs. The commissioner must coordinate the programs with the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources study on batteries.
(b) The commissioner shall investigate options and develop guidelines for collection, processing, and disposal of household batteries. The options the commissioner may investigate include:
(1) establishing a grant program for counties to plan and implement household battery collection, processing, and disposal projects;
(2) establishing collection and transportation systems;
(3) developing and disseminating educational materials regarding environmentally sound battery management; and
(4) developing markets for materials recovered from the batteries.
(c) The commissioner may also distribute funds to political subdivisions to develop battery management plans and implement those plans.
A political subdivision, on its own or in cooperation with others, may implement a program to collect, process, or dispose of household batteries. A political subdivision may provide financial incentives to any person, including public or private civic groups, to collect the batteries.
[Obsolete, 1Sp2005 c 1 art 2 s 161]
116B.01 PURPOSE.
The legislature finds and declares that each person is entitled by right to the protection, preservation, and enhancement of air, water, land, and other natural resources located within the state and that each person has the responsibility to contribute to the protection, preservation, and enhancement thereof. The legislature further declares its policy to create and maintain within the state conditions under which human beings and nature can exist in productive harmony in order that present and future generations may enjoy clean air and water, productive land, and other natural resources with which this state has been endowed. Accordingly, it is in the public interest to provide an adequate civil remedy to protect air, water, land and other natural resources located within the state from pollution, impairment, or destruction.
115A.993 PROHIBITED DISPOSAL METHODS.
A person must not dispose of waste treated seed in a manner inconsistent with the product label, where applicable, or by:
(1) burial near a drinking water source or any creek, stream, river, lake, or other surface water;
(2) composting; or
(3) incinerating within a home or other dwelling.
115A.99 LITTER; PENALTIES AND DAMAGES.
(a) A person who unlawfully places any portion of solid waste in or on public or private lands, shorelands, roadways, or waters is subject to a civil penalty of not less than twice nor more than five times the costs incurred by a state agency or political subdivision to remove, process, and dispose of the waste.
(b) A state agency or political subdivision that incurs costs as described in this section may bring an action to recover the civil penalty, related legal, administrative, and court costs, and damages for injury to or pollution of the lands, shorelands, roadways, or waters where the waste was placed if owned or managed by the entity bringing the action.
Civil penalties and damages collected under subdivision 1 must be collected and distributed as required in chapter 484.
A private person may join an action by the state or a political subdivision to recover a civil penalty under subdivision 1 to allow the person to recover damages for waste unlawfully placed on the person's property.
116B.05 APPOINTING REFEREE.
The court may appoint a referee, who shall be a disinterested person to take testimony and make a report to the court in any such action.
116B.02 DEFINITIONS.
For purposes of sections 116B.01 to 116B.13, the following terms have the meanings given them in this section.
"Person" means any natural person, any state, municipality or other governmental or political subdivision or other public agency or instrumentality, any public or private corporation, any partnership, firm, association, or other organization, any receiver, trustee, assignee, agent, or other legal representative of any of the foregoing, and any other entity, except a family farm, a family farm corporation or a bona fide farmer corporation.
"Nonresident individual" means any natural person, or the personal representative of the person, who is not domiciled or residing in the state when suit is commenced.
"Natural resources" shall include, but not be limited to, all mineral, animal, botanical, air, water, land, timber, soil, quietude, recreational and historical resources. Scenic and esthetic resources shall also be considered natural resources when owned by any governmental unit or agency.
"Pollution, impairment, or destruction" is any conduct by any person which violates, or is likely to violate, any environmental quality standard, limitation, rule, order, license, stipulation agreement, or permit of the state or any instrumentality, agency, or political subdivision thereof which was issued prior to the date the alleged violation occurred or is likely to occur or any conduct which materially adversely affects or is likely to materially adversely affect the environment; provided that "pollution, impairment, or destruction" shall not include conduct which violates, or is likely to violate, any such standard, limitation, rules, order, license, stipulation agreement or permit solely because of the introduction of an odor into the air.
"Family farm" shall mean any farm owned by a natural person, or one or more natural persons all of whom are related within the third degree of kindred according to the civil law, at least one of whose owners resides on or actively operates said farm.
"Family farm corporation" means a corporation founded for the purpose of farming and owning agricultural land, in which the majority of the voting stock is held by, and the majority of the stockholders are, members of a family related to each other within the third degree of kindred according to the rules of the civil law, and at least one of whose stockholders is a person residing on or actively operating the farm, and none of whose stockholders are corporations.
"Bona fide farmer corporation" means an association of two or more natural persons, one of which, if two persons are so associated, or the majority of which, if more than two persons are so associated, reside on, or are actively operating a farm.
115A.97 SPECIAL WASTE; INCINERATOR ASH.
(a) It is the policy of the legislature that mixed municipal solid waste incinerators be planned and managed to achieve to the maximum extent feasible and prudent:
(1) reduction of the toxicity of incinerator ash;
(2) reduction of the quantity of the incinerator ash; and
(3) reduction of the quantity of waste processing residuals that require disposal.
(b) The purpose of this section is to establish temporary and permanent programs to achieve these reduction goals.
(a) For the purposes of this section the following terms have the meanings given them.
(b) "Incinerator ash" means ash resulting from the combustion of mixed municipal solid waste and ash resulting from the combustion of refuse-derived fuel.
(c) "Noncombustible fraction" means constituents of mixed municipal solid waste, including glass, ferrous metals, nonferrous metals and other inorganics, that, when burned, disproportionately add to the quantity of incinerator ash.
The agency shall adopt rules to establish techniques to measure the noncombustible fraction of mixed municipal solid waste prior to incineration or processing into refuse-derived fuel and for at least the testing, management, and disposal of incinerator ash. The rules must be designed to meet the goals in subdivision 1.
[Repealed, 1996 c 310 s 1]
A county solid waste plan, or revision of a plan, that includes incineration of mixed municipal solid waste must clearly state how the county plans to meet the goals in subdivision 1 of reducing the toxicity and quantity of incinerator ash and of reducing the quantity of processing residuals that require disposal. The commissioner, in cooperation with the counties, may develop guidelines for counties to use to identify ways to meet the goals in subdivision 1.
An application for a permit to build or operate a mixed municipal solid waste incinerator, including an application for permit renewal, must clearly state how the applicant will achieve the goals in subdivision 1 of reducing the toxicity and quantity of incinerator ash and of reducing the quantity of processing residuals that require disposal. The agency, in cooperation with the counties, may develop guidelines for applicants to use to identify ways to meet the goals in subdivision 1.
116B.07 RELIEF.
The court may grant declaratory relief, temporary and permanent equitable relief, or may impose such conditions upon a party as are necessary or appropriate to protect the air, water, land or other natural resources located within the state from pollution, impairment, or destruction. When the court grants temporary equitable relief, it may require the plaintiff to post a bond sufficient to indemnify the defendant for damages suffered because of the temporary relief, if permanent relief is not granted.
116B.08 REMITTITUR.
If administrative, licensing, or other similar proceedings are required to determine the legality of the defendants' conduct, the court shall remit the parties to such proceedings. If administrative, licensing, or other similar proceedings are available to determine the legality of the defendants' conduct, the court may remit the parties to such proceedings. In so remitting the parties the court may grant temporary equitable relief where appropriate to prevent irreparable injury to the air, water, land or other natural resources located within the state. In so remitting the parties the court shall retain jurisdiction of the cause pending completion thereof.
Upon completion of such proceedings, the court shall adjudicate the impact of the defendants' conduct, program, or product on the air, water, land, or other natural resources located within the state in accordance with the preceding sections 116B.02 to 116B.07. In such adjudication, the court may order that additional evidence be taken to the extent necessary to protect the rights recognized in sections 116B.01 to 116B.13.
Where, as to any such administrative, licensing, or other similar proceedings referred to above, judicial review thereof is available, notwithstanding any other provisions of law to the contrary, the court originally taking jurisdiction shall maintain jurisdiction for purposes of judicial review.
Nothing in this section shall be applicable to any action maintained under section 116B.10 or to any appropriate administrative proceeding required thereunder.
116B.06 BOND.
If the court has reasonable grounds to doubt the plaintiff's ability to pay any judgment for costs and disbursements which might be rendered against that plaintiff pursuant to chapter 549, in an action brought under section 116B.03, the court may order the plaintiff to post a bond or cash not to exceed $500 to serve as security for such judgment.
116B.09 INTERVENTION; JUDICIAL REVIEW.
Except as otherwise provided in section 116B.10, in any administrative, licensing, or other similar proceeding, and in any action for judicial review thereof which is made available by law, any natural person residing within the state, the attorney general, any political subdivision of the state, any instrumentality or agency of the state or of a political subdivision thereof, or any partnership, corporation, association, organization or other legal entity having shareholders, members, partners, or employees residing within the state shall be permitted to intervene as a party upon the filing of a verified pleading asserting that the proceeding or action for judicial review involves conduct that has caused or is likely to cause pollution, impairment, or destruction of the air, water, land or other natural resources located within the state.
In any such administrative, licensing, or other similar proceedings, the agency shall consider the alleged impairment, pollution, or destruction of the air, water, land, or other natural resources located within the state and no conduct shall be authorized or approved which does, or is likely to have such effect so long as there is a feasible and prudent alternative consistent with the reasonable requirements of the public health, safety, and welfare and the state's paramount concern for the protection of its air, water, land, and other natural resources from pollution, impairment, or destruction. Economic considerations alone shall not justify such conduct.
In any action for judicial review of any administrative, licensing, or other similar proceeding as described in subdivision 1, the court shall, in addition to any other duties imposed upon it by law, grant review of claims that the conduct caused, or is likely to cause pollution, impairment, or destruction of the air, water, land, or other natural resources located within the state, and in granting such review it shall act in accordance with the provisions of sections 116B.01 to 116B.13 and the Administrative Procedure Act.
116B.04 BURDEN OF PROOF.
(a) In any action maintained under section 116B.03, where the subject of the action is conduct governed by any environmental quality standard, limitation, rule, order, license, stipulation agreement, or permit promulgated or issued by the Pollution Control Agency, Department of Natural Resources, Department of Health, or Department of Agriculture, whenever the plaintiff shall have made a prima facie showing that the conduct of the defendant violates or is likely to violate said environmental quality standard, limitation, rule, order, license, stipulation agreement, or permit, the defendant may rebut the prima facie showing by the submission of evidence to the contrary; provided, however, that where the environmental quality standards, limitations, rules, orders, licenses, stipulation agreements, or permits of two or more of the aforementioned agencies are inconsistent, the most stringent shall control.
(b) In any other action maintained under section 116B.03, whenever the plaintiff shall have made a prima facie showing that the conduct of the defendant has, or is likely to cause the pollution, impairment, or destruction of the air, water, land or other natural resources located within the state, the defendant may rebut the prima facie showing by the submission of evidence to the contrary. The defendant may also show, by way of an affirmative defense, that there is no feasible and prudent alternative and the conduct at issue is consistent with and reasonably required for promotion of the public health, safety, and welfare in light of the state's paramount concern for the protection of its air, water, land and other natural resources from pollution, impairment, or destruction. Economic considerations alone shall not constitute a defense hereunder.
116B.11 LONG-ARM STATUTE; ACTIONS UNDER THIS CHAPTER.
As to any cause of action arising under sections 116B.01 to 116B.13, the district court may exercise personal jurisdiction over any foreign corporation or any nonresident individual in the same manner as if it were a domestic corporation or the individual were a resident of this state. This section applies if, in person or through an agent, the foreign corporation or nonresident individual:
(1) commits or threatens to commit any act in the state that would impair, pollute, or destroy the air, water, land, or other natural resources located within the state;
(2) commits or threatens to commit any act outside the state that would impair, pollute, or destroy the air, water, land, or other natural resources located within the state; or
(3) engages in any other of the activities specified in section 543.19.
The service of process on any person who is subject to the jurisdiction of the courts of this state, as provided in this section, may be made by personally serving the summons upon the defendant outside this state with the same effect as though the summons had been personally served within this state.
Only causes of action arising from acts enumerated or referenced in subdivision 1 may be asserted against a defendant in an action in which jurisdiction over the defendant is based upon this section.
Nothing contained in this section shall limit or affect the right to serve any process in any other manner now or hereafter provided by law or the Minnesota Rules of Civil Procedure.
116B.12 RIGHTS AND REMEDIES NONEXCLUSIVE.
No existing civil or criminal remedy for any wrongful action shall be excluded or impaired by sections 116B.01 to 116B.13. The rights and remedies provided herein shall be in addition to any administrative, regulatory, statutory, or common law rights and remedies now or hereafter available.
116C.01 FINDINGS.
The legislature of the state of Minnesota finds that problems related to the environment often encompass the responsibilities of several state agencies and that solutions to these environmental problems require the interaction of these agencies. The legislature also finds that further debate concerning population, economic and technological growth should be encouraged so that the consequences and causes of alternative decisions can be better known and understood by the public and its government.
116C.03 ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY BOARD; MEMBERSHIP; CHAIR; STAFF.
An environmental quality board, designated as the Minnesota Environmental Quality Board, is hereby created.
The members of the board are the commissioner of administration, the commissioner of commerce, the commissioner of the Pollution Control Agency, the commissioner of natural resources, the commissioner of agriculture, the commissioner of health, the commissioner of employment and economic development, the commissioner of transportation, and the chair of the Board of Water and Soil Resources. The governor shall appoint members from the general public to the board, one from each congressional district, subject to the advice and consent of the senate. At least four public members must have knowledge of and be conversant in environmental review or permitting. The governor must appoint the chair of the board. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 15.06, subdivision 6, members of the board may not delegate their powers and responsibilities as board members to any other person. Members appointed under this subdivision must not be registered lobbyists or legislators.
The membership terms, compensation, removal, and filling of vacancies of public members of the board shall be as provided in section 15.0575, except that a public member may be compensated at the rate of up to $125 a day.
[Repealed, 1982 c 524 s 9]
[Repealed, 2017 c 93 art 2 s 166]
Staff and consultant support for board activities shall be provided by the Pollution Control Agency. This support shall be provided based upon an annual budget and work program developed by the board and certified to the commissioner by the chair of the board. The board shall have the authority to request and require staff support from all other agencies of state government as needed for the execution of the responsibilities of the board.
The board shall contract with the Pollution Control Agency for administrative services necessary to the board's activities. The services shall include personnel, budget, payroll and contract administration.
The board shall adopt an annual budget and work program.
116B.13 CITATION.
Sections 116B.01 to 116B.13 may be cited as the "Minnesota Environmental Rights Act."
116C.02 DEFINITIONS.
For the purposes of sections 116C.01 to 116C.08, the following terms have the meaning given them.
"Board" means the Minnesota Environmental Quality Board.
116C.06 HEARINGS.
The board shall hold public hearings on matters that it determines to be of major environmental impact. The board shall prescribe by rule in conformity to the provisions of chapter 14, the procedures for the conduct of all hearings and review procedures.
(a) The board may delegate its authority to conduct a hearing to a hearings officer. The hearings officer shall have the same power as the board to compel the attendance of witnesses to examine them under oath, to require the production of books, papers, and other evidence, and to issue subpoenas and cause the same to be served and executed in any part of the state. The hearings officer shall be knowledgeable in matters of law and the environment.
(b) If a hearings officer conducts a hearing, the officer shall make findings of fact and submit them to the board. The transcript of testimony and exhibits shall constitute the exclusive record upon which such findings are made. The findings shall be available for public inspection.
After receipt of the findings of fact of the hearings officer, the board shall make recommendations to the governor and legislature as to administrative and legislative actions to be considered in regard to the matter.
116C.04 POWERS AND DUTIES.
The powers and duties of the Minnesota Environmental Quality Board shall be as provided in this section and as otherwise provided by law or executive order. Actions of the board shall be taken only at an open meeting upon a majority vote of all the permanent members of the board.
(a) The board shall determine which environmental problems of interdepartmental concern to state government shall be considered by the board. The board shall initiate interdepartmental investigations into those matters that it determines are in need of study. Topics for investigation may include but need not be limited to air and water resources and quality, solid waste management, transportation and utility corridors, energy policy and need, and planning.
(b) The board shall review programs of state agencies that significantly affect the environment and coordinate those it determines are interdepartmental in nature, and ensure agency compliance with state environmental policy.
(c) The board may review environmental rules and criteria for granting and denying permits by state agencies and may resolve conflicts involving state agencies with regard to programs, rules, permits and procedures significantly affecting the environment, provided that such resolution of conflicts is consistent with state environmental policy.
[Repealed, 2017 c 93 art 2 s 166]
The board may establish interdepartmental or citizen task forces or subcommittees to study particular problems.
[Repealed, 1984 c 558 art 2 s 4]
[Repealed, 1984 c 558 art 2 s 4]
At its discretion, the board shall convene an annual Environmental Quality Board congress including, but not limited to, representatives of state, federal and regional agencies, citizen organizations, associations, industries, colleges and universities, and private enterprises who are active in or have a major impact on environmental quality. The purpose of the congress shall be to receive reports and exchange information on progress and activities related to environmental improvement.
[Repealed, 1982 c 524 s 9]
[Repealed, 1982 c 524 s 9]
The board may enter into and enforce stipulation agreements made to enforce statutes and rules administered by the board.
The Environmental Quality Board shall coordinate the implementation of an interagency compliance with existing state and federal lead regulations and report to the legislature by January 31, 1992, on the changes in programs needed to comply.
116C.08 FEDERAL FUNDS; DONATIONS.
The board may apply for, receive, and disburse federal funds made available to the state by federal law or rules promulgated thereunder for any purpose related to the powers and duties of the board. The board shall comply with any and all requirements of such federal law or such rules and regulations promulgated thereunder in order to apply for, receive, and disburse such funds. The board is authorized to accept any donations or grants from any public or private concern. All such moneys received by the board shall be deposited in the state treasury and are hereby appropriated to it for the purpose for which they are received. None of such moneys in the state treasury shall cancel.
116C.34 BUREAU OF BUSINESS LICENSES.
The Bureau of Business Licenses shall establish and maintain an information and referral system to assist the public in the understanding and compliance with the requirements of state and local governmental rules concerning the use of natural resources and protection of the environment. The system shall provide a telephone information service and disseminate printed materials. The bureau shall provide assistance to regional development commissions desiring to create a permit information center.
The bureau shall:
(1) identify all existing state licenses, permit certifications, approvals, compliance schedules, or other programs which pertain to the use of natural resources and to protection of the environment;
(2) standardize permit titles and assign designation codes to all such permits which would thereafter be imprinted on all permit forms;
(3) develop permit profiles including applicable rules copies of all appropriate permit forms, statutory mandate and legislative history, names of individuals administering the program, permit processing procedures, documentation of the magnitude of the program and of geographic and seasonal distribution of the workload, and estimated application processing time;
(4) identify the public information procedures currently associated with each permit program;
(5) identify the data monitored or acquired through each permit and ascertain current users of that data;
(6) recommend revisions to the list of natural resource management and development permits contained in Minnesota Statutes 1974, section 116D.04, subdivision 5; and
(7) recommend legislative or administrative modifications of existing permit programs to increase their efficiency and utility.
The auditor of each county shall post in a conspicuous place in the auditor's office the telephone numbers of the Bureau of Business Licenses and the permit information center in the office of the applicable regional development commission and copies of any information published by the bureau or an information center pursuant to subdivision 1.
116C.705 FINDINGS.
The legislature finds that the disposal and transportation of high-level radioactive waste is of vital concern to the health, safety, and welfare of the people of Minnesota, and to the economic and environmental resources of Minnesota. To ensure the health, safety, and welfare of the people, and to protect the air, land, water, and other natural resources in the state from pollution, impairment, or destruction, it is necessary for the state to regulate and control, under the laws of the United States, the exploration for high-level radioactive waste disposal within the state of Minnesota. It is the intent of the legislature to exercise all legal authority for the purpose of regulating the disposal and transportation of high-level radioactive waste.
116C.711 NUCLEAR WASTE COUNCIL.
The governor's Nuclear Waste Council is established.
(a) The council shall have at least nine members, consisting of:
(1) the commissioners of health, transportation, and natural resources, and the commissioner of the Pollution Control Agency;
(2) four citizen members appointed by the governor;
(3) the director of the Minnesota Geological Survey;
(4) one additional citizen from each potentially impacted area may be appointed by the governor if potentially impacted areas are designated in Minnesota; and
(5) one Indian who is an enrolled member of a federally recognized Minnesota Indian tribe or band may be appointed by the governor if potentially impacted areas are designated in Minnesota and if those areas include Indian country as defined in United States Code, title 18, section 11.54.
(b) At least two members of the council must have expertise in the earth sciences.
A chair shall be appointed by the governor from the members of the council.
The council may create advisory task forces under section 15.014, as are necessary to carry out its responsibilities under this chapter.
Section 15.059 governs terms, compensation, removal, and filling of vacancies of members appointed by the governor.
116C.72 RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT FACILITY.
Notwithstanding any provision of sections 216C.05 to 216C.381 to the contrary, no person shall construct or operate a radioactive waste management facility within Minnesota unless expressly authorized by the Minnesota legislature.
116C.721 PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.
The board shall conduct public information meetings within an area designated in a draft area recommendation report, final area recommendation report, draft area characterization plan, or final area characterization plan. Information meetings shall be held within 30 days after the board receives each of the reports.
The board shall notify the public of information meetings and the availability of the area recommendation reports and the area characterization plans. Copies of the reports shall be made available for public review and distribution at the board office, the Minnesota Geological Survey office, regional development commission offices in regions that include a part of the potentially impacted areas, county courthouses in counties that include a part of a potentially impacted area, and other appropriate places determined by the board to provide public accessibility.
The board shall transmit public concerns expressed at public information meetings to the department of energy.
116C.722 LEGAL AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO INDIAN TRIBES.
If an Indian tribal council that has jurisdiction over part of a potentially impacted area within the state requests legal or technical assistance, the board shall provide assistance.
116C.723 CONSULTATION AND COOPERATION AGREEMENT.
Upon notice from the Department of Energy that Minnesota contains a potentially impacted area, the chair of the council shall negotiate a consultation and cooperation agreement with the federal government.
Unless the state has executed a consultation and cooperation agreement, a person may not make a study or test of a specific area or site related to disposal including an exploratory drilling, a land survey, an aerial mapping, a field mapping, a waste suitability study, or other surface or subsurface geologic, hydrologic, or environmental testing or mapping.
116C.724 DRILLING PERMITS; ACCESS TO TEST DATA; PUBLIC MEETINGS; NEGOTIATIONS.
[Repealed, 1Sp1985 c 13 s 245]
A permit shall be obtained from the Environmental Quality Board, in accordance with chapter 14, for any geologic and hydrologic drilling related to disposal. Conditions of obtaining and retaining the permit must be specified by rule and must include:
(1) compliance with state drilling and drill hole restoration rules as an exploratory boring under chapter 103I;
(2) proof that access to the test site has been obtained by a negotiated agreement or other legal process;
(3) payment by the permittee of a fee covering the costs of processing and monitoring drilling activities;
(4) unrestricted access by the commissioner of health, the commissioner of natural resources, the commissioner of the Pollution Control Agency, the director of the Minnesota Geological Survey, the agent of a community health board as authorized under section 145A.04, and their employees and agents to the drilling sites to inspect and monitor the drill holes, drilling operations, and abandoned sites, and to sample air and water that may be affected by drilling;
(5) submission of splits or portions of a core sample, requested by the commissioner of natural resources or director of the Minnesota Geological Survey, except that the commissioner or director may accept certified data on the sample in lieu of a sample if certain samples are required in their entirety by the permittee; and
(6) that a sample submitted may become property of the state.
(a) A person who conducts geologic, hydrologic, or geophysical testing or studies shall provide unrestricted access to both raw and interpretive data to the chair and the director of the Minnesota Geological Survey or their designated representatives. The raw and interpretive data includes core samples, well logs, water samples and chemical analyses, survey charts and graphs, and predecisional reports. Studies and data shall be made available within 30 days of a formal request by the chair.
(b) A person proposing to investigate shall hold at least one public meeting before a required permit is issued, and during the investigation at least once every three months, during the investigation within the potentially impacted area. The meetings shall provide the public with current information on the progress of the investigation. The person investigating shall respond in writing to the Environmental Quality Board about concerns and issues raised at the public meetings.
(c) Before a person engages in negotiations regarding property interests in land or water, or permitting activities, the person shall notify the chair in writing. Copies of terms and agreements shall also be provided to the chair.
116C.774 AUTHORIZATION.
To the extent that the Radioactive Waste Management Act, section 116C.72, requires legislative authorization of the operation of certain facilities, this section expressly authorizes the continued operation of the Monticello nuclear generating plant spent nuclear fuel pool storage facility and the Prairie Island nuclear generating plant spent nuclear fuel pool storage facility.
116C.73 TRANSPORTING RADIOACTIVE WASTES INTO STATE.
Notwithstanding any provision of sections 216C.05 to 216C.381 to the contrary, no person shall transport radioactive wastes into the state of Minnesota for the purpose of disposal by burial in soil or permanent storage within Minnesota unless expressly authorized by the Minnesota legislature, except that radioactive wastes may be transported into the state for temporary storage in accordance with applicable federal and state law for up to 12 months pending transportation out of the state.