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    2018-05-24 Blue Earth SWCD Letter To House Ag Policy Committee

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    Sally Jo Sorensen
    Regarding the testimony of Lake Crystal farmer Greg Mikkelson to the House Ag Policy Committee hearing on buffer law enforcement.

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    2018-05-24 Blue Earth SWCD Letter To House Ag Policy Committee

    Uploaded by

    Sally Jo Sorensen
    2K views2 pages
    Regarding the testimony of Lake Crystal farmer Greg Mikkelson to the House Ag Policy Committee hearing on buffer law enforcement.

    Original Title

    2018-05-24 Blue Earth SWCD Letter to House Ag Policy Committee

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    Regarding the testimony of Lake Crystal farmer Greg Mikkelson to the House Ag Policy Committee hearing on buffer law enforcement.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    2K views2 pages

    2018-05-24 Blue Earth SWCD Letter To House Ag Policy Committee

    Uploaded by

    Sally Jo Sorensen
    Regarding the testimony of Lake Crystal farmer Greg Mikkelson to the House Ag Policy Committee hearing on buffer law enforcement.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 2

    1160 South Victory Drive, Suite #3

    Mankato, MN 56001
    Blue Earth County (507) 345-4744
    (507) 345-6036
    Soil &Water Conservation District
    May 21, 2018

    Representative Paul Anderson, Agriculture Policy Chair


    369 State Office Building
    100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd
    St. Paul, MN 55155

    Dear Chair Anderson,

    This letter is in response to the testimony given on April 12, 2018 by Greg Mikkelson at the hearing that discussed
    the administrative penalty order proposed by the Board of Water and Soil Resources for buffers. Mr. Mikkelson
    made references that staff from our organization had been unable to issue a certification for his alternative
    practices as being compliant with the buffer law. He stated that he thought the employee was possibly scared
    to make the decision and feared his job was on the line.

    For the record, Mr. Mikkelson came to our office and requested a review of his alternative practices on
    November 27, 2017. Staff told him a field visit would be completed in the spring when the buffer area was free
    from snow. He was informed that we couldn’t address his request immediately because there were more time
    sensitive buffer-related tasks that needed to be completed first, such as issuing extensions for the buffers on
    public waters. His buffers would not be out of compliance until November 1, 2018. Staff contacted Mr. Mikkelson
    to inform him they were going out to check on his buffers on March 30, 2018. Upon review of his fields, the Blue
    Earth Soil and Water Conservation District Board of Supervisors processed his requests for certification of
    alternative practices at our May meeting.

    We are confident in our staff to be able to use existing guidance to determine whether an alternative practice is
    equivalent to the required buffer strips. We have not struggled to interpret the law. There is sound science and
    calculations that can be used to make these determinations. Furthermore, we are confident in our election
    certificates to make the best decisions that we can and stand behind them.

    Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have questions or concerns.

    Sincerely,
    Blue Earth SWCD

    Emily Javens, Board Chair John Rollings, Vice Chair Carol Krosch, Secretary
    District 1 District 4 District 3

    John Shanahan, Treasurer Bill Gardner, Public Relations


    District 2 District 5

    AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER


    cc: Representative Jeff Backer, Agriculture Policy Committee Vice Chair
    Representative David Bly, Agriculture Policy Committee DFL Lead
    Representative Peggy Bennett, Agriculture Policy Committee Member
    Representative Brian Daniels, Agriculture Policy Committee Member
    Representative Clark Johnson, Agriculture Policy Committee Member
    Representative Mary Kunesh-Podein, Agriculture Policy Committee Member
    Representative Dale Lueck, Agriculture Policy Committee Member
    Representative Tim Mahoney, Agriculture Policy Committee Member
    Representative Carlos Mariani, Agriculture Policy Committee Member
    Representative Tim Miller, Agriculture Policy Committee Member
    Representative Jeremy Munson, Agriculture Policy Committee Member
    Representative Bud Nornes, Agriculture Policy Committee Member
    Representative Nels Pierson, Agriculture Policy Committee Member
    Representative Jeanne Poppe, Agriculture Policy Committee Member
    Representative John Poston, Agriculture Policy Committee Member
    Representative Duane Sauke, Agriculture Policy Committee Member
    Jerad Bach, Blue Earth Soil and Water Conservation District Manager
    LeAnn Buck, MN Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts Executive Director

    AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

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