Texas 2013 - 83rd Regular

Texas House Bill HB2146 Compare Versions

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1	1	83R21218 SGA-F
2	2	By: Hilderbran, Lucio III H.B. No. 2146
3	3	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2146:
4	4	By: Callegari C.S.H.B. No. 2146
5	5
6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to certain restrictions on the mining of marl, sand,
10	10	gravel, shell, or mudshell in certain protected freshwater areas.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. (a) The Legislature finds that to help
13	13	facilitate the statewide and regional goals of making efficient and
14	14	responsible use of the state's water and other natural resources,
15	15	the addition of Section 86.0021, Parks and Wildlife Code, under
16	16	Section 2 of this Act, is needed to assist in protecting the
17	17	integrity of navigable rivers and streams in protected freshwater
18	18	areas within the Edwards Plateau, as described by that section,
19	19	while also protecting private property rights and addressing the
20	20	need for the mining of sand, gravel, and other sedimentary
21	21	materials for commercial use in this state. The Legislature finds
22	22	that the Edwards Plateau is of significant statewide importance
23	23	because, among many other attributes and features:
24	24	(1) it is biologically diverse and contains the
25	25	headwaters of many significant rivers and streams that form the
26	26	basis for varied ecosystems and are therefore essential to fishing,
27	27	hunting, swimming, boating, and other recreational and tourist
28	28	activities enjoyed by Texans throughout the state and by visitors
29	29	from around the nation and other countries;
30	30	(2) it is the only area that contains and sustains the
31	31	official state fish of Texas, the Guadalupe bass, is an area in
32	32	which almost half of the Texas white-tailed deer population is
33	33	found, and is important to the fishing, hunting, boating, and other
34	34	recreational communities of Texas and of areas outside this state,
35	35	and is therefore important to the state's economy;
36	36	(3) its ranching and agricultural industries, which
37	37	are water intensive, are of both state and national renown and
38	38	importance; and
39	39	(4) all of the attributes and features of the area
40	40	listed in this subsection and in Subsection (b) of this section are
41	41	important to the state's economic, social, ecological, and
42	42	environmental well-being, and therefore make the preservation of
43	43	the area's rivers and streams in the most pristine condition
44	44	possible an essential state priority.
45	45	(b) The Legislature further finds that creating reasonable
46	46	restrictions on the mining operations described by Subsection (a)
47	47	of this section is of statewide importance and applicability and is
48	48	necessary to facilitate the prevention of:
49	49	(1) further adverse effects on the overburdened
50	50	freshwater resources of this state;
51	51	(2) adverse effects on the Texas tourist industry,
52	52	recreational activities, and other economic assets in the affected
53	53	areas, including long-standing traditional summer camps and
54	54	hunting and fishing operations enjoyed by Texans throughout the
55	55	state and by visitors from around the nation and other countries;
56	56	(3) adverse effects on the value of land along the
57	57	rivers and streams in the affected areas;
58	58	(4) damage or degradation of water quality, fish and
59	59	wildlife resources and their habitat, vegetation, and other natural
60	60	resources;
61	61	(5) adverse effects on navigation, currents affecting
62	62	navigation, and the natural course of navigable rivers and streams;
63	63	(6) damage, degradation, or erosion of the bed,
64	64	bottom, or banks of navigable rivers and streams; and
65	65	(7) the potential increase of downstream nonpoint
66	66	source pollution and damage or degradation of related bays,
67	67	estuaries, wetlands, and their ecosystems.
68	68	SECTION 2. Chapter 86, Parks and Wildlife Code, is amended
69	69	by adding Section 86.0021 to read as follows:
70	70	Sec. 86.0021. COMMERCIAL MINING IN CERTAIN PROTECTED
71	71	FRESHWATER AREAS RESTRICTED. Notwithstanding any other provision
72	72	of this chapter or a rule adopted under this chapter, the commission
73	73	may not grant a permit, or one or more contemporaneous permits
74	74	covering adjacent locations, to take more than 1,000 cubic yards of
75	75	marl, sand, gravel, shell, or mudshell from a protected freshwater
76	76	area, as that term is defined by Section 90.001, unless:
77	77	(1) the area covered by the permit is located east of
78	78	Interstate 35 or outside the Edwards Plateau, which for purposes of
79	79	this section is composed of Bandera, Bexar, Blanco, Burnet, Comal,
80	80	Crockett, Edwards, Gillespie, Hays, Irion, Kendall, Kerr, Kimble,
81	81	Lampasas, Llano, Mason, McCulloch, Medina, Menard, Reagan, Real,
82	82	San Saba, Schleicher, Sterling, Sutton, Travis, Uvalde, Val Verde,
83	83	and Williamson Counties; or
84	84	(2) the marl, sand, gravel, shell, or mudshell will
85	85	not be sold.
86	86	SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies only
87	87	to a permit granted by the Parks and Wildlife Commission under
88	88	Chapter 86, Parks and Wildlife Code, on or after the effective date
89	89	of this Act. A permit granted by the commission before that date is
90	90	governed by the law in effect on the date the permit was granted,
91	91	and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
92	92	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
93	93	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
94	94	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
95	95	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
96	96	Act takes effect September 1, 2013.