A Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR) subcommittee judged that Freeborn County failed to comply with an agreement with the agency to build and implement a watershed plan, and decided to endorse the petition to establish a Shell Rock River Watershed District after a hearing Tuesday.

The subcommittee will recommend the formation of the independent governmental body specialized in the watershed management to the BWSR board next month, according to BWSR Water Management Specialist Jim Haertel, who attended the hearing. Meanwhile, the agency will start interviewing candidates for managers who will run the watershed district, he said.

&uot;I’m happy that they finally made the decision,&uot; petitioner Harley Miller said. Miller headed the petition &045; filed three years ago &045; collecting 755 signatures. BWSR put the petition on hold to give the county time to prove its ability to handle the management practices on its own.

&uot;Without a threat of the watershed board being formed, I don’t think the county would have made their efforts. And despite the fact this is hanging over their head, they have not really completed the agreement (with BWSR),&uot; Miller said. &uot;Our lakes need a lot of work, and most of that work has to be done out in the watershed.&uot;

County and city officials, including Freeborn County Board Chairman Mark Behrends, Albert Lea Mayor Jean Eaton and City Manager Paul Sparks, emphasized their commitments to the watershed and lake projects, but the subcommittee relied largely on a BWSR staff report that shared Miller’s view to make the decision.

&uot;Although the county made progress required by the agreements, it is the opinion of staff that Freeborn County did not fully complete the work required by the two agreements,&uot; it said. &uot;Further, the funds expended to date, and likely budgeted in the future, are insufficient to implement much of the action items contained in the plans.&uot;

Haertel, who read the report, said the county did not amend the comprehensive water plan as the agreement called for, though it did create a Shell Rock River watershed plan and Albert Lea Lake management plan. He also said he is concerned that the county has not made an implementation schedule clear in those plans. In addition to insufficient local funds, he questioned why only a fraction of the budget alloted was used last year.

While the other three subcommittee members supported the report, Chairwoman Char Kahler opposed the motion to recommend the watershed district to the board. Kahler, a former Martin County commissioner, recognized the county’s good faith efforts and suggested BWSR wait for more clear consensus on watershed management in the community.

County Environmental Services Director Randy Tuchtenhagen argued that the required plans are in place. &uot;There was not anything in the agreement about the funding,&uot; he said, challenging the BWSR’s reasoning.

Paul Sorum of Glenville stood in front of the subcommittee and said: &uot;All the water from Freeman Township does not go through Albert Lea Lake. Therefore, we don’t feel responsible for what the lakes are. If we are taxed for this project, we feel it’s unfair and unreasonable.&uot;

Freeborn County Commissioner Dan Belshan agreed. &uot;The new watershed district, if forced upon us, should be designated the Albert Lea Lake Watershed, as the entire focus has always been on the lakes above the dam at the outlet of Albert Lea Lake,&uot; said Belshan, whose electoral district includes areas downstream of the Shell Rock River. &uot;I believe the only reason it received its current name was to make a larger taxation district, and if that’s the case, we should tax folks all the way to Waterloo, Iowa.&uot;

&uot;This is an example of non-elected state bureaucrats overriding the authority of local officials &045; state bureaucracy at its worst,&uot; he said, criticizing the BWSR subcommittee’s decision.

Mike Kelly of Save Our Lakes said the watershed district proposal is underlain by the desire for recreational development of Albert Lea Lake.

&uot;The proponents, I believe, fear the budget crisis of the county and city may not be forthcoming with funding for the dredging aspect of the plan,&uot; he said. &uot;If this board is all about protecting water quality and enhancing it, forming the watershed district in this particular circumstance would contradict your charge.&uot;

For the first one year, the watershed board managers will be appointed by BWSR. Afterward, the county board will appoint the members.

Subcommittee members Ginny Imholts and Victor Ormsby stressed that the county board would still maintain its control over the watershed district including the endorsement of its budget.