Agenda - Council - 01/12/1982 - Laserfiche WebLink

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I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I a major natural and economic resource and that a major objective of any [and use strategy is the preservation of this prime agricultural land. The League endorses a policy of urban conservation based on these precepts. There are several steps that should be taken to: 1) strengthen the present land use controls exercised by cities and coun- ties; 2) provide a framework for orderly, planned growth for cities through the Minnesota Munici- pal Board; 3) discourage scattered development, especially those developments located on agricul- tural land, wetlands, or other land needing pro- tection; and 4) provide the necessary policy direc- tion concerning land-use decisions which clearly have statewide or regional implications. To this end, the League has developed several proposals which address various aspects of the problem. Agricultural preservation. The state should establish a policy encouraging the preservation of prime agricultural land which discourages the development of such land outside areas to be served by a municipal community and encourages regional agencies and local governments to adopt agricultural preservation policies and ordinances. The state should bank and interpret useful data, including relevant soil-type information, on prime agricultural land that will assist local governments in their preservation efforts. The League urges the legislature to establish a committee representing local government as well as other interested parties to propose an agricultural preservation strategy to the 1979 Legislature. Local and regional governments should be re- quired to include an agricultural protection ele- ment ip their comprehensive plans and zoning ordinances. Interim or fringe area land. The Minnesota law that provides preferential property assessments for agricultural property (i.e., the Green Acres Act) is principally aimed at transitional or fringe area land. The law should be modified so that it provides a positive tool for municipalities and counties in influencing orderly development. Specifically, land would qualify for Green Acres status only when it qualifies under a local government's compre- hensive plan or zoning ordinance, or is approved by the local governing body. Also, adequate controls should be provided to ensure an orderly transition to urban uses, including city determination of when the land no longer qualifies for tax abate- ment a/~d/or assessment deferral. When the land no longer qualifies for tax abatement, then land should be assessed consistent with its planned use; however, that portion of the Green Acres law providing for payment of special assessments should be modified to allow an extended pay-back periods, at local option. When any qualifying land is sold, the sale would automatically bring it back to the local government for reconsideration of the tax deferment and abatement status. Finally, there should be no automatic "roll-back" or recap- ture of the difference in tax revenues° Actual roll-back provisions could be negotiated locally or determined in local ordinances. 111-4. Solid and Hazardous Waste Management (A) The problem of solid and hazardous waste dis- posal will be one of the major environmental issues of the next decade. Legislation addressing this problem enacted in 1980 responded to the following concerns of the League, and this legis- lation should not be amended to diminish the emphasis on these concerns: Planning for solid waste disposal. The agency or agencies responsible for develop- ing plans for solid waste disposal should first identify the types of solid waste in- volved and the sources of the solid waste. The plan should give first priority to alter- native use of solid wastes, including genera- tion of energy and recycling. Determination of the applicability of these alternative types of disposal systems should be made prior to the land-fill siting process° Site selection standards and criteria should be developed prior to the siting process and should be subject to exhaustive public hearings and Chapter 15 Administrative Procedures Act requirements. Planning for hazardous waste disposal. A statewide plan for the disposal and regula- tion of hazardous waste must be developed. Hazardous waste must be defined and the sources identified by type, volume, loca- tion, and generator. Those responsible for generation must be involved in solving the disposal problem. Hazardous waste genera- tors must be encouraged to modify produc- tion processes to reuse or recover as much waste as possible and to use less hazardous raw materials in their process. Hazardous waste generators must be required to handle the wastes that are produced in such a way that will allow these wastes to be identi- fied, collected, and recycled or to be dis- -11 ~