Agenda Packets - 1987/09/14 - Laserfiche WebLink

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LUEET 5 Ground and Surface Water Man..aement (B) (cont'd) Loc.l units of government should retain the bssic responsibility for surface water management, as they are the lev.l of government closest to the problem. In 1982, legislation required local governments in the metropolitan area to adopt surface water run off controls and regulations. In 1985, legislation encouraged similar steps to be taken in the non -metropolitan area of the state. Legislation passed in 1987 creating the Clean Water Partnership, will provide financial and technical assistance to local governments. These statutes should be given sufficient time to work, before additional programs or extensive changes to existing programs are enacted by the legislature. The possibility of intergovernmental conflict should be studied and dispute resolution mechanisms should be re-evaluated. The legislature should provide additional funds to further encourage cities and other local governments to undertake water planning activities. Special levies should also be made available to fund water management projects. LUEET-6. Pesticides and Other Hazardous Materials B Ob Individuals and governments at all levels are experiencing prnblems as a result of the use and transportat'. of pesticides, herbicides, and related chemicals by industry, farms, residences, and others. The public health and safety concerns raised by the use of pesticides and other chemicals must be addressed. In one recent Minnesota survey, almost 30 percent of public water supplies and over 50 percent of private wells were found to be contaminated. The Department of Agriculture is required by current law to regulate the use and storage of agricultural chemicals and any local regulation in this area, with the exception of local licensing, penalty, and enforco:ent. This pre-emption of locally established standards could lead to the granting of licenses by the state, for operations which are a threat to the public health and safety of local communities. To protect against this eventuality the Department of Agriculture should be required to obtain local consent prior to the licensing of any agricultural chemical storage or distribution center. Also, if the local government unit decides to regulate agricultural c;emicals, state regulation should supplement, not pre-empt such regulation. The League encourages tighter regulation of agricultural chemical run-off from aerial spraying and ground application that may affect water quality, as well as research inter the long-term effects of the use of agricultural chemicals on the general population. - 4G-