Idaho State Statutes - Idaho Attorney Directory

(1) All state
agencies shall incorporate the adopted ground water quality protection plan in
the administration of their programs and shall have such additional authority
to promulgate rules to protect ground water quality as necessary to administer
such programs which shall be in conformity with the ground water quality
protection plan. Cities, counties and other political subdivisions of the
state shall incorporate the ground water quality protection plan in their
programs and are also authorized and encouraged to implement ground water
quality protection policies within their respective jurisdictions, provided
that the implementation is consistent with and not preempted by the laws of
the state, the ground water quality protection plan and any rules promulgated
thereunder. All state agencies, cities, counties and other political
subdivisions shall cooperate with the department of environmental quality, the
department of agriculture and the department of water resources in
disseminating public information and education materials concerning the use
and protection of ground water quality, in collecting ground water quality
management data, and in conducting research on technologies to prevent or
remedy contamination of ground water.
(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, except as
provided in subsection (3) of this section, whenever a state agency, city,
county or other political subdivision of the state issues a permit or license
which deals with the environment, the entity issuing the permit or license
shall take into account the effect the permitted or licensed activity will
have on the ground water quality of the state and it may attach conditions to
the permit or license in order to mitigate potential or actual adverse effects
from the permitted or licensed activity on the ground water quality of the
state. Nothing contained in this section shall authorize a state agency, city,
county or other political subdivision of the state to issue or require a
permit or license which it is not otherwise allowed by law to issue or
require.
(3) Except as otherwise provided by the ground water quality protection
plan, if a permit or license which deals with the environment is required to
be obtained from a state agency and that agency considers the effect of the
permitted or licensed activity on ground water quality, after notice to other
units of government which may otherwise have regulatory authority over the
activity which is the subject of the permit or license, a city, county or
other political subdivision of the state shall not prohibit, limit or
otherwise condition the rights of the permittee or licensee under the permit
or license on account of the effect the permitted or licensed activity may
have on ground water quality.
Nothing contained in this section shall be deemed to permit cities,
counties or other political subdivisions of the state to regulate ground water
quality with respect to any activity for which another statute or other
statutes may have expressly or impliedly preempted such local ground water
quality regulation.

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