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TCEQ Takes Our Advice - Again! It seems like only yesterday, but in reality in was back in April when we opined [see "Open Government at TCEQ Needs an Open Mike," EI NEWS, April 25 (web), April 28 (print)] that, "Restoring the open mike at TCEQ will also restore the public’s confidence that the Commissioners have open minds." We had been prompted by a case in which the Commission had taken final action despite the absence of the protestants’ legal counsel and apparently over their objections. Well, lo and behold! At a special agenda held on October 30 while we were debarking from a long-planned cruise, the Commission agreed to add a standing agenda item at the monthly work session dedicated exclusively to taking public comment from citizens..... Newly appointed presiding officer Kathleen Hartnett White noted that, "We want to hear what the public thinks about those environmental issues that directly affect them." Newly appointed Commissioner (and former Water Commission general counsel) Larry T. Soward added his support: "I’d like to hear directly from the public on those issues they believe should be addressed. I want to know if we’re going down the right road." Commissioner R. B. "Ralph" Marquez added that, during his long tenure on the Commission, the public has provided innovative suggestions on many occasions: "We don’t necessarily have all of the answers here in Austin. More than once, local initiatives have yielded the best solutions to these complicated environmental problems. Local folks know what works in their areas," he asserted. We are sure that we must not have been the only ones to call for this excellent adventure in government of the people, by the people, and for the people, but we are glad to see this expanded public role in shaping Texas environmental policy. But, lest anyone forget, we did have a second request in our April musing that still needs to be addressed. We still call upon the Commission to implement formal reporting, together with opportunity for public comment at agenda, of the finished work of various advisory panels and work groups. While much of the work of these bodies is summarized on the agency’s website, these work products need to be given an airing at a public forum with the Commissioners presiding.... For more on this story and others in the current on-line and hard-copy issue, click on "Order Now" and become a subscriber! EI Compliance Report - November 14, 2003CAFO Rules, General Permits TCEQ is headed toward development of three separate general permits for concentrated animal feeding operations by 2006 as the agency phases out the permit by rule for CAFO’s. The agency is also in the throes of developing new CAFO rules tailored to the Bosque River Basin as part of a broader revamp of the CAFO rules that will apply statewide outside the Bosque. With all this action, plus the promulgation by EPA of a new AFO rule in April, staffers brought a progress report to the Commission at the November 7 work session. And so did heavy hitter stakeholders.Speaking at agenda, Waco Mayor Linda Ethridge ... said that, after reading the draft rules, she was surprised that [Executive Director Margaret] Hoffman had the chutzpah to claim that the draft relied heavily on stakeholder inputs. It fails entirely to reflect the work in the white papers on waste retention structures and waste application fields, she contended. State senator Kip Averitt of Waco agreed that the rules needed more work, particularly as they apply to discharges from waste lagoons and providing initiatives for the composting program. Ross Wilson of the Texas Cattle Feeders Association also urged the Commission to give his industry flexibility and not to let the Bosque concerns set the baseline for the general permits ... Unless TCEQ can develop a general permit for new CAFO’s that includes requirements for public participation, it would be far better to retain the current permit by rule format for new CAFO’s (outside the Bosque) and then allow compliant facilities to apply for a general permit.... Presiding Officer Kathleen Hartnett White then pronounced that the general permit needs to flow from the final CAFO rule, which may place additional strains on the rules team and may require cooperation from EPA on the timetable for the rule. She agreed that this largely compliant industry does not need a "Bosque creep" into its rules. Commissioner Larry Soward opined that TCEQ should "not get wrapped around the axle on a deadline." He agreed that there needs to be some meaningful public notice and participation for new facilities - if possible. But Commissioner Ralph Marquez stressed the importance of reaching the end of this long and tedious process. For more on this story and others in the current on-line and hard-copy issue, click on "Order Now" and become a subscriber!
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