|
the tats
<br />Clean ater, Land,
<br />an Legacy Amendment
<br />aSSeS
<br />Citizens of Minnesota passed a
<br />constitutional amendment to pro-
<br />vide funding to clean Minnesota's
<br />waterways, protect wildlife habitat,
<br />and promote the arts in November's
<br />general election. The amendment to
<br />I the state constitution increases the
<br />state sales tax by three-eighths of one
<br />percent beginning July 2009, and will
<br />raise an estimated $300 million per
<br />year. Money raised by the sales tax will
<br />be distributed as follows:
<br />• 33% to a new Outdoor Heritage
<br />Fund to restore, protect, and en-
<br />hance wetlands, prairies, forests,
<br />and habitat for game, fish and
<br />wildlife;
<br />• 33% to a new Clean Water Fund to
<br />protect, enhance, and restore wa-
<br />ter quality in lakes, rivers, streams
<br />and groundwater;
<br />® 14.?59u to a new Parks and Trails
<br />s~{i:~c1 tU support parks and trails of
<br />` ~~~',;'z~i~al or statewide significance;
<br />._ ~.tl
<br />`'~ ~~.~~-~ toa new Arts and Cultural
<br />i i~ f '.a,'~ Fund for arts education
<br />"'~' .r;~ access, and to preserve
<br />~' ~ ~~~ ~ -~. ~ia's history and cultural
<br />`~ ~ ` ~ ~'~ ~~~r Heritage portion of
<br />t will be overseen by the
<br />'- ~ ~>rs Heritage Council,
<br />used of eight citizens
<br />leers. Two citizen mem-
<br />:~ted by the Senate, two
<br />~~° the Speaker of the
<br />.: ill be chosen by the
<br />- forbids any citizen
<br />. istered lobbyist.
<br />':et before Decem-
<br />:;.: proposals will
<br />• ~~mpetitive basis;
<br />~~aural Resources,
<br />---~d conservation
<br />for grants. The
<br />:,it make recom-
<br />. an Water Fund.
<br />- to determine
<br />`oursement
<br />in the Clean
<br />r ~ r is s
<br />Amid the news of economic turndowns and budget deft- _
<br />cits, Minnesota has something to celebrate. On November
<br />4, 2008, voters passed an amendment to the State Constitu-
<br />tion by a wide margin. This Clean Water, Land, and Legacy ~ ` ~ ~~
<br />Amendment will fund restoration and protection of water
<br />resources, support parks and trails, restore and protect fish ~_
<br />and wildlife habitat, support the arts, and preserve Minnesota's cultural heritage. The
<br />amendment is monumental in its scope and potential impact: the funds that will be
<br />devoted to clean water are estimated to be approximately $100M per year for 25 years.
<br />This is almost exactly the amount required to clean up the state's long list of impaired
<br />waters, as estimated some years ago by the G16 (architects of the 2006 Clean Water
<br />Legacy Act). This funding also coincides with the release of the final version of the
<br />Statewide Conservation and Preservation Plan prepared by the University of Minneso-
<br />ta, Bonestroo, and CR Planning. This plan calls for a comprehensive and integrated ap-
<br />proach to protecting, restoring, and conserving the state's natural resources (air, water,
<br />land, wildlife, fish, outdoor recreation), which is completely aligned with the aims of
<br />the amendment. Thus the state has a roadmap and funds to follow the roadmap - we
<br />hope that this becomes a model for the nation.
<br />Water resources are clearly a topic of national attention, with three excellent re-
<br />ports recently released. The USGS NAWQA program has results of a national consul-
<br />tation. Peter Gleick of the Pacific Institute issued a report "Water: Threats and Op-
<br />portunities. Recommendations for the Next President'; and Gerry Galloway and others
<br />have just published the findings of the Fourth National Water Policy Dialogue spon-
<br />sored by AWRA, ASCE, and the National Wildlife Federation. (See Publications and
<br />Resources on page seven for report web links). President-Elect Obama also indicates
<br />that water issues are a priority for the country.
<br />From all of us at the WRC, we wish you a healthy, happy New Year, and may it
<br />come with peace, a stabilized economy, and renewed hope for sustaining our rich
<br />water resources.
<br />
<br />Deborah Swackhamer, WRC
<br />Co-Director
<br />Framework continued from page 1
<br />(USEPA), the USDA Natural Resources
<br />Conservation Service, University of Min-
<br />nesota faculty, the Clean Water Council,
<br />a private consulting firm, and a local
<br />unit of government. In addition, WRC
<br />Co-Director Faye Sleeper, Research As-
<br />sociate Stephanie Grayzeck, and Gradu-
<br />ate student Shannon Wing researched
<br />environmental reporting frameworks,
<br />interviewed state agency staff and stake-
<br />holder groups, and more fully developed
<br />the draft framework.
<br />The CWLA tracking framework
<br />created as a result of this process is a
<br />matrix that reports on projects in four
<br />categories: Partnerships/Leveraging-
<br />coordinatingwith local, state and federal
<br />partners, Environmental lndicators-
<br />physical results of the effort (water quality
<br />improvement, land-use changes, etc.),
<br />2
<br />Social Indicators-changes in behavior
<br />and attitudes related to v,~ater quality and
<br />improvement activities, and Organiza-
<br />tional Performance-managing a program
<br />or project. "We believe this framework
<br />is unique in the U.S.;' said Sleeper. "No
<br />other system coordinates the reports of
<br />four state agencies, and no other system
<br />measures both physical results and be-
<br />havioralchanges
<br />The group developed a list of pro-
<br />posed measures, and the state agency
<br />representatives worked with their staffs
<br />to modify the framework. The next
<br />phase will include development of an
<br />implementation plan with local partner
<br />involvement, a potential pilot through the
<br />USEPA, and a communication plan. The
<br />final report is available at http://wrc.umn.
<br />edu'/outreach/cwlatracl<ing/.
<br />December 2008
<br />
|