State Supreme Court delivers blow to river protection
Dealing a blow to river protection, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled last month that the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) does not have the authority to veto local land use decisions that violate the States Wild and Scenic Rivers rules.
Following the court decision, State legislation was introduced last week that would explicitly authorize DNR oversight.
The widely publicized case pitted wealthy local broadcast magnate Rob Hubbard against the DNR in a showdown over the DNRs authority to enforce rules intended to protect the scenic quality of the St, Croix River. The Court was asked to decide whether the agency had acted within its authority when it vetoed a decision by the City of Lakeland to allow Hubbard a variance to build a 10,000-square-foot home closer to the bluff than the 40 feet allowed by rule.
The court found that the DNR lacked express and implied statutory authority to certify variance decisions by local units of government. The decision will affect other State Wild and Scenic Rivers including the Mississippi River between St. Cloud and Champlin, and portions of the Minnesota, Rum, Cannon, Kettle and North Fork Crow rivers.
What the ruling does not do is invalidate the Wild and Scenic Rivers rules themselves. These rules were developed and promulgated within the explicit statutory authority given the agency by the legislature and, as such, remain in effect.
The new legislation introduced last week by Rep. Bev Scalze (House File 3406) and Sen. Ann Rest (Senate File 2820) would give the DNR the authority to certify or veto local decisions if the DNR Commissioner determined they did not conform to state standards. The current version of the legislation is written to apply only to the St. Croix but other State Wild and Scenic River segments may be added.
- Whitney Clark, Executive Director