HF 1235

3rd Engrossment - 81st Legislature (1999 - 2000) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to agriculture; modifying provisions relating 
  1.3             to manure runoff, odor standards, administrative 
  1.4             penalty orders, and environmental assessment 
  1.5             worksheets; providing an exception to environmental 
  1.6             review rules; requiring a report; amending Minnesota 
  1.7             Statutes 1998, sections 116.07, by adding a 
  1.8             subdivision; 116.0713; and 116.072, by adding a 
  1.9             subdivision; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota 
  1.10            Statutes, chapter 116D; repealing Laws 1998, chapter 
  1.11            401, section 54. 
  1.12  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.13     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 116.07, is 
  1.14  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  1.15     Subd. 7d.  [EXCLUSION.] In regulating livestock or animal 
  1.16  feedlots under subdivisions 7 to 7c, a county or the 
  1.17  commissioner must not include manure runoff containment areas 
  1.18  that are less than 6,000 cubic feet in the definition of an open 
  1.19  air clay, earthen, or flexible membrane lined swine waste lagoon.
  1.20     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 116.0713, is 
  1.21  amended to read: 
  1.22     116.0713 [LIVESTOCK ODOR.] 
  1.23     (a) The pollution control agency must: 
  1.24     (1) monitor and identify potential livestock facility 
  1.25  violations of the state ambient air quality standards for 
  1.26  hydrogen sulfide, using a protocol for responding to citizen 
  1.27  complaints regarding feedlot odor and its hydrogen sulfide 
  1.28  component, including the appropriate use of portable monitoring 
  2.1   equipment that enables monitoring staff to follow plumes; 
  2.2      (2) when livestock production facilities are found to be in 
  2.3   violation of ambient hydrogen sulfide standards, take 
  2.4   appropriate actions necessary to ensure compliance, utilizing 
  2.5   appropriate technical assistance and enforcement and penalty 
  2.6   authorities provided to the agency by statute and rule. 
  2.7      (b) Livestock production facilities are exempt from state 
  2.8   ambient air quality standards while manure is being removed and 
  2.9   for seven days after manure is removed from barns or manure 
  2.10  storage facilities. 
  2.11     (c) For a livestock production facility having greater than 
  2.12  1,000 animal units, the maximum cumulative exemption in a 
  2.13  calendar year under paragraph (b) is 21 days for the removal 
  2.14  process. 
  2.15     (d) The operator of a livestock production facility that 
  2.16  claims exemption from state ambient air quality standards under 
  2.17  paragraph (b) must provide notice of that claim to either the 
  2.18  pollution control agency or the county feedlot officer delegated 
  2.19  under section 116.07. 
  2.20     (e) State ambient air quality standards are applicable at 
  2.21  the property boundary of a farm or a parcel of agricultural land 
  2.22  on which a livestock production facility is located, except that 
  2.23  if the owner or operator of the farm or parcel obtains an air 
  2.24  quality easement from the owner of land adjoining such farm or 
  2.25  parcel, the air quality standards shall be applicable at the 
  2.26  property boundary of the adjoining land to which the easement 
  2.27  pertains.  The air quality easement must be for no more than 
  2.28  five years, must be in writing, and must be available upon 
  2.29  request by the agency or the county feedlot officer.  
  2.30  Notwithstanding the provisions of this paragraph, state ambient 
  2.31  air quality standards are applicable at locations to which the 
  2.32  general public has access.  The "general public" does not 
  2.33  include employees, trespassers, or other categories of people 
  2.34  who have been directly authorized by the property owner to enter 
  2.35  or remain on the property for a limited period of time and for a 
  2.36  specific purpose. 
  3.1      Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 116.072, is 
  3.2   amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  3.3      Subd. 13.  [FEEDLOT ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY ORDERS.] (a) 
  3.4   Prior to the commissioner proposing an administrative penalty 
  3.5   order to a feedlot operator for a violation of feedlot laws or 
  3.6   rules, the agency staff who will determine if a penalty is 
  3.7   appropriate and who will determine the size of the penalty shall 
  3.8   offer to meet with the feedlot operator to discuss the 
  3.9   violation, and to allow the feedlot operator to present any 
  3.10  information that may affect any agency decisions on the 
  3.11  administrative penalty order. 
  3.12     (b) For serious feedlot law violations for which an 
  3.13  administrative penalty order is issued under this section, the 
  3.14  penalty may be forgiven if: 
  3.15     (1) the abated penalty is used for environmental 
  3.16  improvements to the farm; and 
  3.17     (2) the commissioner determines that the violation has been 
  3.18  corrected or that appropriate steps are being taken to correct 
  3.19  the action. 
  3.20     Sec. 4.  [116D.041] [ANIMAL FEEDLOTS; DISCRETIONARY 
  3.21  ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT WORKSHEETS.] 
  3.22     The responsible governmental unit may require that an 
  3.23  environmental assessment worksheet be prepared for the 
  3.24  construction or expansion of any animal feedlot if the 
  3.25  responsible governmental unit has material evidence that the 
  3.26  proposed animal feedlot may have the potential for significant 
  3.27  adverse environmental effects. 
  3.28     Sec. 5.  [116D.042] [ANIMAL FEEDLOTS; CONNECTED ACTIONS.] 
  3.29     Provisions of environmental review rules regarding 
  3.30  connected actions do not apply to animal feedlots. 
  3.31     Sec. 6.  [REPORT ON AMBIENT AIR QUALITY STANDARDS 
  3.32  EXEMPTION.] 
  3.33     By February 15, 2001, the commissioner of the pollution 
  3.34  control agency shall report on the use of the exemption to the 
  3.35  ambient air quality standards under Minnesota Statutes, section 
  3.36  116.0713, paragraph (b), to the chairs of the senate and house 
  4.1   policy committees with jurisdiction over agriculture and the 
  4.2   environment.  The report must include any recommendations for 
  4.3   changes to the exemption. 
  4.4      Sec. 7.  [REPEALER.] 
  4.5      Laws 1998, chapter 401, section 54, is repealed. 
  4.6      Sec. 8.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  4.7      Sections 1 to 7 are effective the day following final 
  4.8   enactment.