Introduction
In the face of competing economic and political interests,
environmental oversight can be difficult to enact, fund,
and enforce. Public health and natural lands are often damaged
when advocates shift focus to another issue. Tracking and
monitoring specific environmental state issues is one tool
to provide comprehensive oversight. With its focus on fact
gathering, this form of legislation can shine a spotlight
not only on problems, but also on solutions.
Introduced Legislation
California
Biomonitoring
Introduced in February 2004, SB
1168 establishes the Healthy Californians Biomonitoring
Program, the first-ever statewide biomonitoring program,
which would “measure the pollution in people” and help scientists,
medical professionals, and community members make more informed
decisions and policies to better protect public health.
Biomonitoring refers to the process by which blood, urine,
and breast milk are examined to measure and detect levels
of harmful chemicals, industrial compounds, and pollutants
in a person’s body. The program will be administered jointly
by the Division of Environmental and Occupational Disease
Control at the Department of Health Services (DHS) and the
Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment within
the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA).
The bill requires the assessment of a fee upon manufacturers
or persons who directly produce toxic chemicals and authorizes
the adoption of related regulations for this purpose. The
bill requires the department and the agency to establish
an advisory panel to assist the department and the agency
and provides for a phased implementation of the biomonitoring
program, with full implementation commencing after completion
of initial pilot programs. See SERC’s Biomonitoring State
Activity Page for additional information about biomonitoring.
Status: In Assembly Committee
on Health: Reconsideration granted, 6/22/04.
Hawaii
Monitoring Impacts of Coastal Development Projects
The purpose of HB
1841, introduced in January 2004, is to standardize
the statewide procedure for determining potential impacts
of coastal development projects and to monitor and measure
conditions following development of coastal projects. The
guidelines are based on monitoring protocol guidelines developed
by the West Hawaii Coastal Monitoring Task Force.
Status: The House Committee
on Water, Land Use, and Hawaiian Affairs and the House Committee
on Energy and Environmental Protection recommend the measure
be deferred, 2/10/04.
Michigan
Monitoring Ambient Water Quality
Representative Chris Kolb introduced HB
4089 in January 2003. The bill authorizes the Department
of Environmental Quality to encourage monitoring of ambient
water quality of waters of the state by citizens and community
groups. The department would offer these “clean water corps”
technical assistance, integrate the citizens’ monitoring
data into water quality assessments and agency programs,
and aid groups in finding public and private funds to conduct
assessments.
Status: Referred to House Committee
on Land Use and the Environment, 1/29/03
Minnesota
Well Monitoring
HF
2318, introduced in February 2004, requires the State
Department of Natural Resources to monitor and evaluate
public and private wells in areas where sewage sludge is
applied to agricultural land.
Status: Referred to House Committee
on Environmental and Natural Resources Policy, 2/23/04.
Enacted Legislation
Maine
Mandatory Reporting for Water Withdrawals
LD
1488, authored by Rep. Scott Cowger, requires annual
water use reporting (beginning on December 1, 2003) by all
water users who withdraw more than specified threshold levels.
The bill also directs the state environmental protection
agency to adopt rules that establish water use standards
to help protect aquatic life and establish criteria for
designating watersheds most at risk from excessive water
withdrawals.
Status: Signed into law, 4/4/02.
Read SERC’s “Groundwater
Withdrawal Reporting” Policy Issues Package, for
more information.
Minnesota
Citizen Water Quality Monitoring
Introduced by Senator Jane Krentz, SF
2932 requires the state’s Pollution Control Agency to
encourage citizen water quality monitoring by providing
technical assistance, integrating the citizens’ monitoring
data into water quality assessments and agency programs,
and seeking private and public funds to promote citizen
monitoring.
Status: Enacted 3/22/02.
New York
Environmental Health Tracking System
Representatives Koon and DiNapoli’s bill, A
10243, provides for the development of an environmental
health tracking system within the Department of Health.
Public health officials, scientists, and environmentalists
agree that hazards such as air and water pollution can cause,
trigger, or exacerbate chronic diseases, including cancer
and respiratory ailments like asthma, and birth defects.
With critical information obtained through the tracking
and monitoring of chronic diseases and their potential link
to environmental exposure, the state will no longer simply
address chronic diseases with costly treatment rather than
cost-effective prevention.
Status: Signed into law, 3/17/04.
For additional information, read SERC’s State Activity
Page on “Tracking
Birth Defects.”
Rhode Island
Marine Monitoring
On June 24, 2004, SB
3027 was signed into law. The Comprehensive Marine Monitoring
Act establishes a watershed and marine monitoring system
to identify and predict potential problems in aquatic habitats.
It provides for the creation of an online central database
to store data and makes it available to policymakers and
the general public. It also coordinates the efforts of government
agencies, nonprofit groups, and universities in collecting
information.
Status: Signed into law, 6/24/04.
Virginia
Logging Notification
Delegate James Dillard introduced a Notification Bill,
HB
448, to improve logging notifications. It requires the
commercial timber-harvesting operator to notify the State
Forester prior to completion, but not later than three working
days after commencement of a harvesting operation. If the
operator fails to provide the notice, the State Forester
is authorized to assess a civil penalty of $250 for the
initial violation and up to $1,000 for any subsequent offense
occurring within a 24-month period.
Status: Signed into law, 4/1/02.
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