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FROM
THE DIRECTOR
The Minnesota Environmental Initiative (MEI) turns
15 this year. It has been a productive decade and a half, and our list
of environmental outcomes is impressive. Equally impressive, however,
are the opportunities that lie ahead. I have been fortunate to work at
MEI for all but three of those years, and can say without hesitation that
our work has never been more exciting than it is right now. MEI is experiencing
one of those rare moments when experience and capability align perfectly
with opportunity. Consider these examples:
• Dialogue: Dialogue is the driving force behind all MEI’s
work - dialogue that finds common ground among uncommon partners and that
sets a course for action. Our Policy Forum Series have long provided a
venue for these important conversations. MEI’s board and staff are
currently developing additional dialogue-based projects that have the
potential to launch new opportunities with an expanded set of partners.
Look at the Business and Environment series described in this newsletter
for a good example of a dialogue-based project.
• Convening stakeholders: Our skills marshalling dialogue
allow us to effectively bring together diverse stakeholders to craft solutions
to specific environmental problems. MEI first convened stakeholders four
years ago when we began our work on impaired waters that led to the passage
in 2006 of Clean Waters Legacy in the Minnesota legislature. We’ve
taken that experience and applied it to four new stakeholder-based projects
- look at the items elsewhere in this newsletter about our projects on
energy efficiency, growth pressures, mercury, and biofuels to see how
this rapidly expanding area of MEI’s work offers exciting opportunities
to develop effective environmental solutions by bringing stakeholders
together.
• Large-scale implementation: Many stakeholders can mean large
projects. MEI consequently has become more and more able to manage large-scale
complicated projects that achieve significant environmental improvements.
Consider Project Green Fleet, once a small pilot project that is now an
$8 million effort to install pollution control equipment on every eligible
school bus in the state. Another good example is MEI’s work with
Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity that ultimately may have a profound effect
on affordable green housing in the entire metro area. Our capability to
help take projects like these to scale opens the door to work that will
have wider and deeper impact in the future.
These talents caused MEI to be invited to serve on two of the technical
working groups within the Minnesota Climate Change Advisory Group, a part
of Governor Pawlenty’s Next Generation Energy Initiative. I cannot
imagine an issue more timely than climate change, and MEI is eagerly exploring
ways we can help tackle this immense challenge. Our skills encouraging
dialogue, convening stakeholders, and implementing large-scale projects
can serve as a catalyst for the public-private partnerships that will
be required to achieve carbon emissions reductions. As you read through
this newsletter, note that climate and energy are already a common thread
connecting much, if not all, of MEI’s current work.
Fifteen years ago, few of us could have foreseen
climate change as an emerging and universal issue. MEI has demonstrated
its ability to be nimble and adaptable and welcomes the challenges that
the next fifteen years will bring. We have been successful by observing
our fundamental mission: bringing together leaders from businesses, nonprofits
and government to advance innovative environmental solutions. After 15
years, MEI is what it always has been - a place for committed people to
come together and accomplish through partnership what would otherwise
be impossible.
My heartfelt thanks to everyone who supported our efforts during these
past years. I ask that your support continue and grow as we tackle tough
and critical environmental issues such as climate change in the years
to come. As you read this newsletter, I hope you will be inspired to contact
us and become involved in this important work.
-- Mike Harley,
Executive Director
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PROTECTING
LAND AND WATER RESOURCES IN MINNESOTA'S GROWING COMMUNITIES
Ninety percent of Minnesota’s projected population
growth is expected to occur within the eleven-county metro area, and that
growth will have an inexorable impact upon the region’s land and
water resources. That worry was confirmed in early 2006 with the publication
of the report Growth Pressures on Sensitive Natural Areas in DNR’s
Central Region coauthored by the research firm Ameregis and the Minnesota
Department of Natural Resources. As a result, MEI hosted a Growth Pressures
Convening in July 2006 that brought together nearly fifty individuals
from government, nonprofit, and business to discuss the potential policy
implications of the report. An outcome of the convening is an MEI project
designed to improve the effectiveness and coordination of water quality
and land use policies in the metro area.
The two-year project has three main components: research on existing policies,
a stakeholder process to review that research and strengthen policies,
and outreach to broaden the discussion of growth pressures in the metro
area. MEI is now conducting the research phase of the project, and is
evaluating how land and water policies interact as well as mechanisms
for implementing policy revisions. Because these policies have their greatest
effect at the local level, MEI is keenly interested in the perspectives
offered by elected officials, local government staff, watershed management
organizations, and builders, among others. Five focus group meetings took
place this fall in the communities of Andover, Chanhassen, Hugo, Rogers,
and Rosemount. These discussions will help us identify what has and hasn’t
worked in land and water use policies and frame the stakeholder portion
of the project to begin in 2008.
For more information about the Land and Water Policy Integration Implementation
Project contact Shelley Shreffler at 612-334-3388 ext. 107.
-- Shelley
Schreffler, Director of Environmental Projects
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MAKING
YELLOW BUSES GO GREEN
School buses and other vehicles with diesel engines
represent only 10% of the traffic on Minnesota roads, but contribute more
than 50% of the air pollution generated by vehicles in the state. And
diesel engines that pollute outside air also pollute the air inside a
bus: studies have shown that pollution levels inside a school bus can
be five times the levels outside. Reducing emissions from bus engines
both protects the health of schoolchildren and improves the quality of
the air that all Minnesotans must breathe.
Consequently, in 2005 MEI partnered with the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce,
the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, the Minnesota Pollution
Control Agency, other state government agencies, nonprofits and businesses
to create Project Green Fleet (PGF). PGF is a collaborative effort to
reduce diesel emissions and children's exposure to diesel exhaust by installing
EPA-verified pollution control equipment on school buses and other diesel
vehicles. PGF’s current participants include dozens of school districts,
local governments, the Minnesota Departments of Health and Education,
bus operator associations, and school bus fleet owners such as First Student.
PGF’s goals are challenging and the expected
outcomes are impressive. By the end of 2007, PGF will have retrofitted
500 buses, an effort that will directly reduce emissions exposure for
approximately 30,000 school children. Recognizing the importance of this
work, the Minnesota legislature recently appropriated $2.4 million to
support retrofitting school buses statewide. This increased state funding
will allow PGF to develop and implement plans to retrofit all of Minnesota’s
approximately 4,000 eligible school buses in four years (an eligible bus
is a bus manufactured between 1995 and 2005; older buses are fewer and
difficult to retrofit, newer buses seldom require retrofits). For every
100 buses retrofitted with the equipment used by PGF, the estimated emission
reductions are: carbon monoxide, 860 lbs.; fine particulate matter, 120
lbs.; and volatile organic compounds, 620 lbs. The emission and exposure
reductions will be tracked over a minimum of five years.
Even more remarkable, is that participation in PGF is entirely voluntary.
Minnesota is in attainment: air quality in the state satisfies the standards
established by the federal Clean Air Act. As a result, there is no regulatory
mandate to retrofit diesel engines to make them run cleaner; however,
should air quality decline in the state, measures to regain attainment
will be costly. Other states implement and fund these types of projects
largely because they have violated federal air quality standards. PGF
is a uniquely proactive effort to remain in attainment. PGF also balances
private, federal, state and local government support. Sponsors include
Flint Hills Resources, Xcel Energy Foundation, Minnesota Power, Blue Cross
and Blue Shield of Minnesota Foundation, Mayo Foundation, and many others.
With its partners, PGF has raised more than $3.6 million for its voluntary
emission-reduction efforts. The foresight of PGF’s funders who have
supported this effort allows Minnesota to tackle air quality problems
before they become more serious environmental and health threats.
Lastly, because PGF is proactive, nearly everything PGF does is a first.
PGF must be thoughtful, knowledgeable and resourceful when introducing
ground-breaking emission-reduction efforts. The efforts must be easily
understood, be economical and efficient, and achieve undisputed environmental
and health benefits. PGF has been extraordinarily successful within its
first two years because its partners share a common vision and are committed
to accomplishing measurable, positive environmental outcomes.
To find out how your school district can become involved in Project Green
Fleet, to become a sponsor, or for more information, visit www.projectgreenfleet.org
or contact Bill Droessler at 612-334-3388 ext. 103.
-- Bill Droessler,
Director of Environmental Projects
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CREATING
EASEMENTS FOR BIOFUEL PRODUCTION
The State of Minnesota is moving toward a clean
energy future and an important part of that movement is biofuels. Where
will those biofuels be grown? How can the state interact with the private
sector to ensure a reliable supply of biofuels in the future? MEI has
been asked by the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources to examine
these questions by convening a broad group of stakeholders over the next
four months. Their input will help design an easement program based on
the existing Reinvest in Minnesota program: the Reinvest in Minnesota-Clean
Energy program (RIM-CE). RIM-CE will promote biofuel production that also
encourages improved water quality, reduced chemical inputs, soil protection,
carbon sequestration, and increased biodiversity and wildlife habitat.
The stakeholders first met on September 11, in their role as the Technical
Review Committee. The meeting included a brief discussion of the proposed
RIM-CE, the stakeholder process, and an update on research being conducted
by a team from the University of Minnesota that will help shape the final
program. Following the meeting, the stakeholders decided to form four
work groups: Land Management, Potential Benefits, Project Areas, and Payment
Structure. Over the next few months, the work groups will meet to discuss
their respective issues and offer input to the entire group of stakeholders
for consideration.
The next Technical Review Committee meeting will be held on Wednesday,
November 14. More information about RIM-CE and a summary of Technical
Review Committee meetings can be found at
http://www.bwsr.state.mn.us/RIM-CE.html
or by contacting Shelley Shreffler at 612-334-3388 ext. 107.
-- Shelley
Schreffler, Director of Environmental Projects
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HOW MUCH MERCURY?
Critical to managing any pollutant is determining
an acceptable amount of that substance in the environment - its total
maximum daily load (TMDL) – and implementing a plan for meeting
that target. Mercury is an especially difficult pollutant to manage as
its pathways through the environment are complex and its distribution
is statewide. Determining how to implement a mercury TMDL plan consequently
involves many stakeholders, and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
(MPCA) has retained MEI to gather their input by conducting a year-long
stakeholder process that will ultimately result in a suitable plan for
achieving the statewide target.
MEI’s process includes three stakeholder groups. Foremost is the
strategy work group, comprised of 17 major stakeholders such as mining
industries, electric power utilities, the MPCA, DNR, recreational fishing
interests, environmental justice groups, tribal representatives, and environmental
advocacy organizations that meets monthly and is responsible for developing
overall recommendations for the MPCA’s implementation plan. A second
group, consisting of 40-50 additional stakeholders with broader interests
in managing mercury meets twice over the course of the project. In addition,
MEI will invite an even larger group of concerned parties to provide feedback
on the draft implementation plan at a public meeting toward the end of
the project. Ron Nargang has been contracted by MEI to chair this entire
process and facilitate each stakeholder group meeting. Ron is a former
DNR deputy commissioner, former executive director of the Minnesota chapter
of The Nature Conservancy, and a past MEI board member. This statewide
approach to mercury reduction is unprecedented and could serve as a nationwide
model useful to other states struggling to formulate a successful mercury
TMDL policy.
For more information about the Mercury TMDL Implementation Plan Stakeholder
Process visit
http://www.mn-ei.org/policy/hgtmdlindex.html
or contact Kabby Jones at 612-334-3388 ext. 109.
-- Kabby Jones,
Manager of Environmental Projects
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BUILDING SUSTAINABLE HOMES
Homes built using sustainable methods and incorporating
sustainable designs need not be unique structures for the well-to-do.
Habitat for Humanity is well-known for its efforts to build simple, affordable
housing in partnership with people in need; that partnership has also
included MEI for the past ten years. MEI’s partnership with Twin
Cities Habitat for Humanity (Habitat) began with a joint effort to redevelop
urban sites throughout the metropolitan area. Now the two non-profits
have embarked on a broad initiative to improve the sustainability of the
full life cycle of Habitat building projects. MEI has helped Habitat assess
their building practices, looking for opportunities for improvement and
for communicating their achievements. The entire gamut of construction
has been examined, from waste management during construction to the selection
of products and systems installed within homes.
An outcome of this joint effort is the construction of a green demonstration
house. The demonstration house will be located in Crystal, Minnesota,
a new community for Habitat. Construction is planned for summer 2008.
The house will demonstrate existing, proven techniques that Habitat staff,
volunteers, and contractors can use to dramatically decrease the negative
environmental impact of home construction while building housing that
is easy and cost effective for families to maintain. LHB Corporation,
an architecture, engineering and design firm in Minneapolis, is helping
design the demonstration house, and conducted a cost-benefit analysis
that gave Habitat an estimate of the payback period and up-front costs
of green building systems and products.
The demonstration house will showcase and implement designs, methods and
products that will potentially be used on future Habitat projects. The
most successful technologies and practices ultimately will be integrated
into every new Habitat home. The methods chosen will utilize simple, proven
technologies that do not sacrifice the reliability, replicability, or
ease of volunteer construction of Habitat’s homes. These also will
be healthy homes: materials used during construction and for furnishings
will contribute fewer contaminants to the indoor environment. And energy-efficient
homes are more affordable, a major benefit for families in need who might
otherwise risk foreclosure. All told, Habitat and MEI’s sustainable
building plan will have a profound impact on healthy and affordable green
housing in the entire Twin Cities region.
For more information about MEI’s partnership with Twin Cities Habitat
for Humanity contact Megan Dobratz at
612-334-3388 ext. 104.
-- Megan Dobratz,
Manager of Environmental Projects
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TALKING BUSINESS AND THE
ENVIRONMENT
This fall MEI will gather Minnesota business leaders,
representatives from government agencies, and members of the nonprofit
sector to participate in the first of four events that examine emerging
environmental issues affecting Minnesota industries and businesses. Called
the Business and Environment Series, these events will bring together
a diverse group interested in discussing those issues that intersect both
business and the environment. Participants will identify common goals,
develop collaborations, and begin an ongoing dialogue about these emerging
issues. In addition, a smaller group of environmental managers and other
business leaders will be invited to participate in a facilitated business-to-business
discussion about each session’s topic. This subset of the larger
gathering will be a working group charged with developing pragmatic short-
and long-term solutions to the issue at hand. Their findings will be shared
with colleagues and other interested parties.
The first event will focus on energy consumption, both electricity and
fuels. Other topics to be addressed in later sessions include climate
change and carbon management, water quality (including stormwater management
and water availability), product stewardship and green procurement.
For more information about the Business and Environment Series, or to
receive announcements about each event, please contact Shelley Shreffler
at 612-334-3388 ext. 107.
-- Shelley
Schreffler, Director of Environmental Projects
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2008 ENVIRONMENTAL INITIATIVE
AWARDS
Mark your calendars! The 2008 Environmental
Initiative Awards will be held on May 15, 2008 at the Nicollet Island
Pavilion. Now celebrating its 15th year, the Environmental Initiative
Awards recognizes 15 innovative partnerships around the state. These innovative
projects harness the power of collaboration to produce tangible environmental
outcomes. In 2007, MEI broadened its five qualifying categories to better
represent the breadth of partnership-based environmental projects creating
change around Minnesota. The revised categories included Air Quality and
Climate Protection, Environmental Education, Green Building and Development,
Green Business and Environmental Management, and Natural Resource Protection.
The nomination period for the 2008 Environmental Initiative Awards will
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