ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION PROGRAMS
The Legislature has declared in statute that each person in Minnesota has a right to the protection, preservation and enhancement of air, water, land and other natural resources, and that each person also has the responsibility to contribute to the protection, preservation and enhancement of those resources. To secure and advance that right a number of state agencies have responsibility and authority for policy development, standard setting, permitting and enforcement in environmental areas. These agencies include the Minnesota Environmental Quality Board (EQB), the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR), the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA), the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), and others. The Directory of Licenses and Permits at the back of this Guide lists the appropriate regulatory agency by regulated activity. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING Certain projects (for example, the construction or expansion of commercial or industrial facilities) can trigger specialized environmental review intended to prevent damage to environmental resources as a result of private or public development projects. This preventive planning approach helps identify and mitigate possible environmental problems while the project is still in the planning stages before permits are issued and construction or operation begins. Those reviews are conducted by a legally defined “responsible governmental unit” and are of two types: an Environmental Assessment Worksheet and an Environmental Impact Statement. An Environmental Assessment Worksheet is a preliminary review to evaluate the potential for significant environmental effects from a project. An Environmental Impact Statement is a more comprehensive environmental review. The size and nature of certain projects trigger a mandatory Environmental Assessment Worksheet and/or an Environmental Impact Statement while in other cases the nature of review is at the discretion of the responsible governmental unit. For more information, contact the Minnesota Environmental Quality Board or the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency at the address and telephone numbers listed in the Resource Directory section of this Guide. Once environmental review is complete, or in cases where no environmental review is required, the project proposer may proceed to submission of an application for permit. It is the goal of the state that environmental or resource management permits be issued or denied within 150 days of application. The legislature created the Minnesota Business First Stop program to ensure the coordination and implementation of state environmental permits. A project proposer may apply to the program for assistance in obtaining necessary state permits and approvals. That assistance shall include: providing a list of all federal, state, and local permits required; providing a timeline for issuance of permits; coordinating the drafting any memoranda of understanding among permitting agencies; coordinating all federal, state, and local comment periods and hearings; providing such other assistance requested to facilitate final approval and issuance of permits. For more information contact Minnesota Business First Stop at the address and telephone number listed in the Resource Directory section of this Guide.
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