Petitions

*Updates to petition requirements* 

A legislative update to petition requirements was signed in to law and will go in to effect on July 1, 2025. This update will now require that a petition must be accompanied by “not less than 100 individuals who reside or own property in a Minnesota county where the proposed action will be undertaken or in one or more adjoining counties”. Starting July 1, all signatures for a petition must be from the same county or an adjoining county as the proposed project location. To be considered an adjoining county, the counties must be considered as connecting or sharing a border. 

What is a petition?

The rules of environmental review identify when an EAW is mandatory for certain projects or project types (mandatory categories, 4410.4300). There may however, be projects that do not meet the requirements of a mandatory EAW that still should undergo environmental review based on the nature or location of that project. The petition process is meant to give people of Minnesota an opportunity to alert responsible governmental units (RGUs) of projects that they believe may have the potential for significant environmental effects even though the project does not meet the requirements for a mandatory EAW. The petition process can be useful in determining if certain projects need further evaluation to understand potential environmental impacts. Ultimately, it is the responsibility of the RGU to evaluate a petition and determine if the project does require an EAW.

The petition process requires preparation of information about the proposed project and identification of environmental concerns from a proposed project via a document, obtaining signatures, and providing material evidence supporting your written concerns. While the process is meant to alert governmental entities of projects that may have potential for environmental effects, there is some work that goes along in documenting this. This webpage is meant to provide guidance on completing the process. With any questions please reach out to the EQB staff via email or phone (651-757-2873) and they would be happy to assist you.

What can be petitioned?

Any project can be petitioned for an EAW as long as there is a governmental action for the project, and the project is not exempt from environmental review. A governmental action means a project has some sort of governmental approval before it can begin, such as a permit. So, if a project does not require approval through a permit, a permit has not yet been applied for, or all of the permits have already been issued then an EAW cannot be required.

It is important to note that the purpose of environmental review is not to stop projects, but to collect information on the potential environmental effects of the project and how that can be avoided or mitigated. Additionally, the petition process does not create an additional source of approval for projects. Once a petition is submitted to the EQB and deemed complete, a project may not be started and a final governmental decision may not be made to grant a permit, approve a project, or begin construction on that project until the petition has been dismissed or the resulting environmental review is completed.

Petition requirements

In order for a petition to be deemed complete by the EQB, a petition must meet the requirements outlined in Minnesota Rules 4410.1100. Below is a list of all the things that a petition must include in order for it to be complete.

1. 100 signatures and mailing addresses of individuals who reside or own property within the same or adjoining county as the proposed project in the state of Minnesota.
2. A description of the proposed project.
3. The proposer of the project.
4. The name, address, and telephone number of the representative of the petitioners.
5. A brief description of the potential environmental effects which may result from the project.
6. Material evidence indicating that, because of the nature or location of the proposed project, there may be potential for significant environmental effects. The material evidence must physically accompany the petition. It is not sufficient to merely provide a reference or citation to where the evidence may be found.

Preparing a petition

Basic petition overview

Preparing a petition is not meant to be a difficult process. However, it can be a bit overwhelming if you are not familiar with the Environmental Review Program and this guidance is meant to assist in the preparation process. The above overview provides a very basic description of the steps that you can expect to occur during the petition process. Our quick reference document provides a much more in depth description of the entire petition timeline.

Steps to preparing a petition

1. Verify proposed project can be petitioned
   • Contact local unit of government to learn more about the proposed project
   • Contact EQB to discuss petition process
2. Research the proposed project to learn more about the project's circumstances
3. Start a petition document (see Petition template for help)
   • Write a project description
   • Write about the potential environmental effects from the proposed project
   • Obtain material evidence to support the environmental effects identified and write that connection
   • Collect a minimum of 100 signatures from people that reside or own property in Minnesota within the county or an adjoining county from the proposed project
   • Write the petitioners' representative name, address, and phone number
4. Submit the petition to the EQB
5. Notify the project proposer in writing

Research the project

In order for a petition to be complete it does require some general information about the proposed project, so this is an important first step in preparing a petition. When seeking project information, a couple of sources listed below may help:

• Public notices
• Local planning and zoning office
• Newspaper articles
• Planning commission meetings
• Permit applications
• Local government website
• Project proposers website
• The EQB Monitor

The most important recommendation would be that you contact the planning and zoning office of the local government in which the project will be located. Your local unit of government is often the first contact point for project proposers as they look to get their projects permitted. If possible, ask the planning and zoning office if they have the project plans available and if it is possible to schedule a time to review them. If the project was discussed at a recent planning commission meeting, ask for a copy of the meeting minutes. The local unit of government can be very helpful in answering general questions that you may have about the project as well.

Write project description

After researching the project and obtaining information it is now time to prepare the petition document and materials. You can start by working in your own word document or you can utilize a template from the templates section below to assist in preparing your documents.

The following types of examples of information that may be included in your petition:

• If an EAW, EIS or AUAR has been completed previously on this specific project.
• The type of project residential, industrial, etc.
• The estimated size of the project in acres or other units (single family housing units, gallons per day, etc.).
• If the project is part of a phased development project or if it is part of several smaller projects being developed by the same owner.
• The project location: city, county, and nearby streets or other landmarks
• The natural resource features (lakes, rivers, wetlands etc.)
• The current land-use or cover type (forest, farmland, etc.)
• The name and address of the project proposer (whoever is building the project)

Below is a sample of a project description:

“Heritage Acres is a proposed residential development on 60 acres. The project is located in the City of Jamesville, which is in Scott County. It is located along a stretch of Highway 169, about 5 miles from the center of town. As far as we know, the project will construct up to 100 detached dwelling units and 150 attached dwelling units in the form of condominiums, townhouses and apartments. The project is located on Green Lake. Most of the site is forested.”

Write about the project’s potential environmental effects

You should try to brainstorm list of potential environmental effects, starting with the most concerning effects. When writing out this section of your petition it is helpful to explain how the potential environmental effect relates to the proposed project. The list below is a collection of common types of environmental concerns noted in petitions.

Keep in mind that environmental review is meant to assess environmental effects from a project; it does not stop a project. If the information provided to the RGU demonstrates that non-environmental issues are your only motivation for petitioning the RGU will be less likely to find potential for environmental effects and order an EAW. Most times it is best to exclude non-environmental issues from your petition such as concerns about decreased property values, increased taxes or infringements.

Obtain supporting material evidence

A petition should do more than raise questions or concerns it should demonstrate that something about the location and nature of the project makes it deserving of environmental review. Examples of such types of evidence include:

• Scientific journal articles (https://scholar.google.com/ is a helpful search engine)
• Maps
• Newspaper articles
• Site plans
• Photographs
• Testimonial letters
• Letters from expert agencies and environmental reports

A petition should explain how the evidence demonstrates that there may be the potential for significant environmental effects. Include a short paragraph or provide an explanation after each item is listed describing the materials and how they support your case; otherwise, the RGU might not understand your reasons for including the materials with the petition. The material evidence must be supporting evidence relevant to the circumstances of the project and potential environmental effects listed in the previous section. Remember a petition is being used to persuade decision-makers to complete an EAW.

When writing out this section, each piece of material evidence should be listed and titled for easy reference when reviewing the petition. The material evidence however must physically accompany the petition. The entire document of material evidence must be included and attached. Hyperlinks to material evidence are not acceptable. It is recommended that material evidence found on the internet be converted to a PDF to make it easier to include with the petition. If mailing the petition then printing out all pages of the material evidence and highlighting the sections that connect to your environmental concerns is also an option.

Gathering signatures

For a petition to be considered complete it must have 100 signatures of individuals who live or own property in Minnesota within the same county or an adjoining county as the proposed project. Every person who signs the petition must include their name and complete mailing address. A complete mailing address includes a street address, city and a zip code. Those that sign must also verify that their mailing address is located in the same county or an adjoining county as the proposed project. In order to be considered adjoining, the counties must share a border. You may want to ask for an email address as well so that you can easily reach those that would like to be updated on the petition process. Be prepared to share any information you have about the project with the people who are going to sign the petition.

Petitioner's representative

Once an RGU has been designated by the EQB and received a complete petition, the RGU is only required to inform the petitioners' representative of the status of the petition. The petitioners' representative then would be responsible for informing those that signed as the process moves forward. If you are planning on being out of town when the RGU makes its decision, you may want to list someone else as the Petitioners’ Representative so they can watch for the decision and inform petitioners of the results. The Petitioner’s Representative should be someone as concerned about the project as you are and who accepts this responsibility.

Submitting a petition

1. Once you have completed your petition document and assembled all the material evidence, send the petition and all materials to the EQB. This can be achieved in a few ways as noted below.
   • Email at env.review@state.mn.us. By emailing, EQB staff will be able to contact you sooner regarding the completeness of the petition.
   • If your documents are too large it is helpful to utilize a file hosting service such as dropbox or google drive. Once your documents are hosted on a file hosting site, email the link to env.review@state.mn.us and EQB staff can then download the documents.
   • Email is preferred, as it allows for EQB staff to interact with the petitioners' representative more efficiently. If email is not an option, then please mail a hard copy of the petition and all associated documents to: Environmental Quality Board, 520 Lafayette Road North, Saint Paul, MN 55155
2. In addition to submitting the petition to the EQB, the petitioner’s representative is responsible for notifying the project proposer that a petition for an EAW has been submitted referencing their proposed project. A mailed letter or including the project proposer in an email when you send the petition to the EQB would both suffice in meeting this requirement. If a letter is to be mailed, please provide a copy to EQB.
3. Once EQB staff have received the petition they will review it for completeness within five business days.
   • If deemed complete, EQB staff will assign the petition to an RGU who will then be responsible for making a decision on the need for an EAW. EQB staff will forward a copy of the petition to the RGU, along with a list of requirements the RGU will need to follow when it makes its decision about the need for an EAW. EQB staff will then publish the petition designation in the next edition of the EQB Monitor.
   • If the petition is deemed incomplete, then EQB staff will notify the petitioners’ representative of the deficiencies and provide guidance on how to resubmit a complete petition. The petition will not be considered valid until it is resubmitted with the necessary improvements. Upon resubmittal, EQB staff will have another five business days to determine if the petition is complete.
4. After an RGU has been assigned, only the RGU may provide updates on the status of the petition. However, EQB staff are   available to assist regarding any questions on the petition process.
   • If any RGU cannot act on a petition because no permit application has been filed, the permit application has been withdrawn, or the permit application has been denied, the petition remains in effect for one year from the date on which the petition was received by the RGU.

What next?

Depending on the RGU, there will be up to 15 business days, which can be extended by an additional 15 business days, to decide on the need for an EAW. Once that decision is made the RGU will notify the petitioners' representative of that decision. The RGU must also inform the EQB of that decision and it will be published in the EQB Monitor. 

Templates

EQB staff have designed templates to assist in assembling petitions. These templates can be utilized as fillable documents you can complete digitally or they can be printed out and filled out manually. 

 This template above assists and provides guidance for all required parts of the petition. 

If you just need a template for obtaining signatures, the above template can provide assistance in obtaining the required signatures. 

Petition Tracking

View the table below for complete petitions that have been submitted over the past year. Please note that the required 100 signatures have been removed from the documents as well as certain information from project proposers and petitioners representatives. 

Additional information