Opinion ID: 1749632
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Overview of the Minnesota Environmental Policy Act

Text: The Minnesota Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) requires that governmental agencies contemplating taking action (e.g., issuing a conditional use permit) on a proposed project must first consider the project's environmental consequences. [3] Minn. Stat. § 116D.04, subds. 1a(d), 2a (2004), Minn. Ctr. for Envtl. Advocacy v. Minn. Pollution Control Agency, 644 N.W.2d 457, 468 (Minn.2002). Chapter 4410 of the Minnesota Rules contains the rules for environmental review enacted by the Environmental Quality Board (EQB) pursuant to Minn.Stat. § 116D.04. There are two main types of environmental review under MEPA's rules: project-specific review, where a proposed project is reviewed to determine whether it has the potential to cause significant environmental effects; and generic review, where review is ordered by the EQB to study types of projects that are not adequately reviewed on a case-by-case basis. See Minn. R. 4410.1000, 4410.3800 (2005). The processes for project-specific and generic environmental review are different. For both processes, if an initial environmental review is needed, an RGU is designated to handle the review. [4] Minn. Stat. 116D.04, subd. 2a(c); Minn. R. 4410.0500 (2005). But with a project-specific review, the RGU first prepares an EAW, which is described in section 116D.04 as a brief document which is designed to set out the basic facts necessary to determine whether an environmental impact statement is required for a proposed action. Minn.Stat. § 116D.04, subd. 1a(c) (2004); Minn. R. 4410.1000, subp. 1, 4100.0200, subp. 24 (2005). When preparing the EAW, the RGU applies certain criteria laid out in Minn. R. 4410.1700, subp. 7, to determine whether the project has potential for significant environmental effects. Minn.Stat. § 116D.04, subd. 2a(c) (2004); Minn. R. 4410.1700, subp. 7 (2005). If, after reviewing the EAW, the RGU decides that the project does have the potential for significant environmental effects, the RGU is required to issue a positive declaration indicating that an EIS must be completed. Minn. R. 4410.1700, subps. 1, 3. An EIS is an exhaustive environmental review that the party proposing the project must conduct at its own expense. See Minn. R. 4410.2000, subp. 1; Minn. R. 4410.2300; Minn.Stat. § 116D.045. For generic EIS determinations, the EQB is the default RGU, and no EAW is completed or used in determining whether a generic EIS is required. Minn. R. 4410.3800, subps. 5-6. The factors which must be considered by an RGU in determining whether a generic EIS is required are found in Minn. R. 4410.3800, subp. 5. These factors are different in number and type from the factors used for project-specific determinations. Compare Minn. R. 4410.3800, subp. 5, with Minn. R. 4410.1700, subp. 7.