[mpls] Fee for storm water runoff

[Joeandjeannabor at aol.com]

Hooray for the City for taking an action that is environmentally  proactive.
Maybe now they'll finally have enough funds to complete the  storm/sewer 
separation for the City. 
 
In 2000, Senator Linda Higgins and several Mpls neighborhood groups  
advocated for and the MPCA dedicated $250,000 for three air  monitors for North and 
Northeast Mpls. The MPCA Air Monitoring report  from the city-wide collected 
data is due out this fall. From just the  historical data of just two large 
facilities in the City, the HERC plant  violations, and Xcel Riverside releasing 
100 pounds of mercury and tons of  global warming emissions annually into the 
atmosphere, an air  tax sounds like a interesting option for another "new" 
revenue stream for  the City. Businesses would indeed find a way to pass on the 
costs to  residents. However, residents and families are already paying millions 
for  asthma related drugs and doctor visits. Two questions: "Is there a  
political will to really go "green" in Minneapolis?",  "And would citizens rather 
pay for asthma or cleaner air?" 
 
 
Amy  Luesebrink
LBNA staff