Members of the Izaak Walton League are expected to ask the Mower County Board tomorrow to back off of cuts to Environmental Services.

Jim Stiles, chapter 10 president, asked the board to reverse their decision in a letter e-mailed to the commissioners Sept. 8.

The position was cut when Environmental Services and the Highway Department were combined into a Public Works department.

The letter said straight pipes are dumping sewage in rural areas, and “raw sewage in rural areas continues at an alarming rate.” The letter estimated 10 percent of rural homes pose a public health threat.

“We need enforcement and continued township by township checking to eliminate and prevent future dumping of raw sewage into our streams,” the letter said.

Based on the 2008 Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment, which passed with 68 percent approval in Minnesota, Stiles and the league argued most residents support clean waterways.

According to Stiles, the county risks losing grants available through the amendment if they change the program.

Still, the letter was optimistic.

“The future is bright for the many benefits that our rivers bring to Mower County,” the letter read.

By protecting the outdoors, Stiles and Izaak Walton League leaders argued, they’ll create jobs.

“The County Environmental Health Specialist position needs to be continued,” the letter read.