Minnesota Environmental Review and Permitting ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND

Minnesota Environmental Review and Permitting ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING PROGRAM OVERVIEW www. eqb. state. mn. us

National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) Minnesota Environmental Policy Act of 1973 (MEPA) NEPA • Established Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) • Required for federal actions – policy, permitting, funding etc. • Each agency develops implementing procedures 2/10/2022 MEPA • Established the Environmental Quality Board (EQB) • Required by Minnesota Rule Chapter 4410 o what projects need review, o which unit of government performs the review, and o how the review should be done www. eqb. state. mn. us Primary Differences • • • When review is required Who performs the review What is included in the review 2

Other State Environmental Policy Acts State California Connecticut District of Columbia Georgia Hawaii Indiana Massachusetts Maryland Minnesota Montana New Jersey New York North Carolina South Dakota Virginia Washington Wisconsin 2/10/2022 Act/Regulation CEQA CEPA GEPA OEQC IDEM MEPA Executive Order #215 SEQR SEPA Statute 34 A Virginia Code SEPA WEPA www. eqb. state. mn. us 3

Environmental Review Objectives (4410. 0300) Environmental Effects Public access to decision makers of a Project 2/10/2022 Delegate authority to Responsible Governmental Unit www. eqb. state. mn. us Eliminate duplication Reduce delay and uncertainty 4

Environmental Review VS Permitting Environmental Review Permitting • Provides relevant information for all environmental approval decisions • Required to construct & operate • Focused on specific regulatory compliance • Prevents costly reconstruction • Final design decisions made • Public concerns identified ahead of final approvals • Narrow public process • Considers cumulative, social and economic impacts • Enforceable conditions Environmental Review is not an approval process does not approve or disapprove a project, does not itself impose conditions on projects and does not change authority of governmental units 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 5

Roles Project Proposer 2/10/2022 Responsible Governmental Unit www. eqb. state. mn. us Public 6

Environmental Review Documents • Citizen Petition for an EAW re F t os M t n e qu • Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW) • Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) • AUAR, GEIS, and other alternative forms of review 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 7

Program Statistics 2017 Monitor Submission ER Types 2017 RGUs Petition 5% [CATEGORY NAME] [VALUE] City 41% AUAR 12% EIS 3% Township 2% SWCD 2% County 19% EAW 80% (n=122) 2/10/2022 8

Program Challenges • Tensions between the public, project proposers and regulatory requirements can lead to perceptions of dissatisfaction with the process. • Identifying training needs; staffing changes, review frequency • Statewide categories vs. regional/local concerns • Some projects, that minimally exceed the threshold, can be delayed without an obvious environmental benefit. • Jurisdictional differences in review: local, state and federal • Addressing emerging issues 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 9

Benefits of Environmental Review • Provides an holistic, ecological view of potential environmental effects for decisionmakers • Considers cumulative environmental impacts • Flexible; opportunities for alternative review processes • Public-oriented • Provides the public with relevant technical environmental information in a single document, to help them participate in local decisions before projects can be constructed. • Helps project proposers early in their design process • Identify and address regulatory and community concerns, before project designs are final 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 10

Minnesota Permitting Efficiency Goals • Statutory goals • Tier 1—approve or deny permit application within 90 days of complete application • Tier 2—approve or deny permit application within 150 days of complete application 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 11

DNR Permits Tier 1 • Aquatic plant management — for renewals, if no site visit required • Water appropriation — for temporary water use under an existing general permit • Work in public waters — for work under a general permit 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 12

DNR Permits Tier 2 • Aquatic plant management — for new applications, or if site visit otherwise needed • Water appropriation — for individual permits, or new General Permits • Work in public waters — for individual permits, or new General Permits • Taking of endangered or threatened species • Metallic mineral mining (ferrous and non-ferrous) • Peat mining 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 13

DNR Permits • For FY 17, DNR received 7300 new applications • 3593 Tier 1 & 3708 Tier 2 • 6617 applications approved or denied • 485 applications withdrawn • 623 applications in progress after 6/30/17 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 14

DNR Permits FY 17: • Only 8 Tier 1 permits (less than 0. 5%) took longer than 90 days to approve or deny following a complete application • Only 81 Tier 2 permits (2. 6%) took longer than 150 days to approve or deny following a complete application • Incomplete applications are primary cause for permits not approved or denied within 90/150 days of initial application 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 15

MPCA Permits • Air stationary source of emissions • Solid waste facility • Hazardous waste • NPDES/SDS (individual water discharge) • General construction stormwater permits • Municipal and industrial stormwater permits • Aboveground storage tanks 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 16

MPCA Permits • MPCA policy is to prioritize permits for new or expanding projects • Priority permits typically defined as needing some construction at the site • “Non-priority” permits are generally routine reissuances not requiring substantive changes; typically less time-sensitive to permittees • Permittees covered under existing permits until reissuance completed 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 17

MPCA Permits In FY 17, MPCA received 3070 permit applications: • 2335 were Tier 1 priority; 173 Tier 1 non-priority • 100 were Tier 2 priority; 462 were Tier 2 non-priority • 96% of Tier 1 priority permits issued within goal • 38% of Tier 2 priority permits issued within goal 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 18

MPCA Permits FY 17 Summary: • Issued 94% of priority air, water and land permits (Tiers 1 and 2) within goal timeframes • Issued 46% of non-priority air, water and land permits (Tiers 1 and 2) within goal timeframes • Issued 87% of all air, water and land permits (Tiers 1 and 2) within goal timeframes 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 19

Tribal Consultation 2013 Governor’s Executive Order: • All agencies recognize unique legal relationship with Tribal Nations • Subset of agencies (including MPCA and DNR) shall develop tribal consultation policies in conjunction with Tribal Nations, and annually identify topics or issues to address • All agencies designate a principal point of contact for Tribal Nations • All agencies institute training to staff who work with Tribal Nations State Historic Preservation Office/ Cultural Resource assessments 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 20

Tribal Consultation MPCA: • Instituted tribal consultation policy for decades • EPA directs that delegated agencies conduct consultation; Region 5 highly engaged • Assistant Commissioner is designated Consultation Official/Tribal Liaison; program staff have regular contact on specific projects • Issues of concern: water quality and permits, mining, wild rice, pipelines 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 21

Tribal Consultation DNR: • DNR Operational Order 129—consistent with Executive Order 13 -10 • Assistant Commissioner serves as Tribal Liaison • Regional Directors conduct annual consultation with individual bands • Separate formal coordination and communication protocols under treaties, court agreements, etc. • Quarterly regional meetings re mining topics • Formal and informal consultation re specific DNR actions—permits, environmental review, fisheries, etc. • DNR permits generally not required for tribal members on tribal lands 2/10/2022 www. eqb. state. mn. us 22

Thank you! Questions?