February 2016
Money generated by the Legacy
Amendment is helping reduce algae-causing phosphorus in Minnesota waters via
grants to improve wastewater treatment. Since 2010, $20 million in Clean Water Fund
grants have helped 30 municipalities finance upgrades to their wastewater
treatment facilities. Through these upgrades, the facilities were able to meet
state-mandated reductions in phosphorus discharges.
Altogether, these plants have
reduced phosphorus in wastewater discharges by 120,000 pounds a year. That
means 2.4 million pounds total of phosphorus removed over the plants’ life
expectancy of 20 years.
The Clean Water Fund grants
leveraged an additional $56 million in other funding for these infrastructure
improvements.
One example of this effort is
the city of Cambridge that used a Clean Water Fund to upgrade its wastewater
treatment facility (photo at right). This city of 8,200 in Isanti County discharges its treated
wastewater to the Rum River, which is designated as an Outstanding Resource
Value and needs protection because of its exceptional water quality. The
facility was overloaded hydraulically and organically, and faced site
restrictions because of its location on the river. In addition, the MPCA set tighter
limits on phosphorus discharges.
The city of Cambridge designed a new facility to
improve wastewater treatment and developed a system to work with existing equipment
to increase operator control, process flexibility, and resource conservation at
a reasonable cost. The treatment upgrades
resulted in a 92-percent reduction – 10, 451 pounds per year – in phosphorus
discharged to the Rum River.
The entire project costs
about $15 million. The phosphorus reduction portion costs about $2.7 million,
of which state funding provided $1.37 million.
Statewide, municipal
wastewater phosphorus discharges have decreased by 70% over the past 15 years.
Overall, efforts have led to a steady decline of phosphorus pollution and major
improvements in water quality. Implementation of newly adopted river nutrient
standards is expected to drive further reductions in wastewater phosphorus
loads in coming years.
See more information about
Clean Water funding for wastewater treatment in the 2016 Performance Report.
While wastewater plays an
important role in reducing nutrient pollution, achieving and maintaining
healthy waters will require action from all sources, including farmland, rural
areas and urban centers.
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Preventing lakes and
streams from degrading in water quality is one of the three key components of
Minnesota standards: antidegradation policy, designated beneficial uses and
criteria necessary to meet those uses. Antidegradation policy is generally
implemented through MPCA-issued control documents such as National Pollutant
Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits.
The
MPCA is proposing new rules to replace existing “nondegradation” rules (Minn.
R. parts 7050.0180 and 7050.0185) with new “antidegradation” rules.
The proposed
rules:
- Align with
federal antidegradation regulatory policy and EPA guidance.
- Contain two
sets of standards to address the differences between individual and general
permits.
- Identify the
information needed and the factors considered by the MPCA to make decisions.
- Establish a
process for determining the water quality baseline.
- Provide limited
exemptions from antidegradation procedures.
- Provide for
compensatory mitigation for the loss of existing uses resulting from physical
alterations.
The proposed
rules do not:
- Contain
exemptions from antidegradation procedures for de minimis (i.e.,
non-significant) discharges.
- Create
additional regulatory authority over currently unregulated activities.
- Alter, other
than housekeeping changes, nondegradation provisions found in Minn. rules (chapters 7052, Lake
Superior Basin Water Standards, or 7060, Underground Waters).
The MPCA will
hold two hearings on the proposed rules March
31, at 9 a.m. and 6 p.m., at the MPCA St. Paul office, with videoconference
links also available at the MPCA Duluth and Mankato offices. Addresses and directions are
available on the MPCA website.
Interested
parties may submit comments now, at the hearings, or for a period of at least 5
days following the hearings. (A longer post-hearing comment period may be
announced at the hearing.)
Send comments or questions about the
proposed rules to minnrule7050.pca@state.mn.us
or Carol Nankivel, MPCA/RMAD, 520 Lafayette Road, St. Paul, MN 55155-4194.
Additional
information is available:
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The MPCA will
hold the 42nd annual Collection System Conference March 21-23 at the Marriott
Northwest in Brooklyn Park (7025 Northland Drive North, Brooklyn Park, MN).
Highlights
include:
- SA
& SB exam refresher
- SC
& SD exam refresher
- Certification
examinations and
- Vendor
and professional organization displays
Other topics
include leadership, pipe and manhole rehab, asset management, pumps and lift
station tour, sewer toolkit, traffic and confined space safety, infiltration
and inflow, flushable wipes (see details below), stormwater, sewer cleaning and
televising, and much more.
See the full conference
brochure and registration packet under Wastewater Training on the MPCA
Training Events Calendar webpage. Exam refreshers require pre-registration,
contact Tracy Finch at 651-757-2103, 1-800-657-3864 or tracy.finch@state.mn.us.
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The MPCA will
hold the 79th annual Wastewater Operations Conference March 23-25 at the Marriott
Northwest in Brooklyn Park (7025 Northland Drive North, Brooklyn Park, MN).
Highlights
include:
- A
& B exam refresher
- C
& D exam refresher
- Type
IV (Biosolids) refresher
- Certification
examinations and
- Vendor
and professional organization displays
This year the
MPCA is pleased to announce that 286
Permitted Wastewater Treatment Facilities will be receiving an Operational
Award. The Facility Operational Awards Ceremony will be held Thursday afternoon
at 2 p.m.
Other topics
include new plants/upgrades, eDMRs, FBI cyber security and SCADA systems, emerging
issues, energy efficiency, industrial wastewater, new plant operator, stabilization
ponds, safety, LSTS/small plants, and much more.
See the full conference
brochure and registration packet under Wastewater Training on the MPCA
Training Events Calendar webpage. Exam refreshers require pre-registration,
contact Tracy Finch at 651-757-2103, 1-800-657-3864 or tracy.finch@state.mn.us.
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Minnesota
communities need an estimated $11 billion over the next 20 years for new water
infrastructure projects to replace aging wastewater and drinking water systems,
upgrade treatment facilities to meet higher standards, and expand systems to
accommodate growth.
Managing wastewater,
stormwater, and drinking water supplies is important for Minnesota’s health and
safety. It also critical for ensuring the economic vitality and future competitiveness
of a community. Minnesota communities -- both rural and metro – face serious
challenges to making these improvements to their water infrastructures.
To better understand
these challenges, state representatives from the Governor’s Office, MPCA,
Minnesota Dept. of Health and Public Facilities Authority held listening
sessions last fall in eight communities across Minnesota. More than 80
communities spoke up on their concerns, which can be grouped into four main
categories:
Cost-related problems
- Debt
service and tax base issue make grants, not loans, the best option for many
communities.
- The
local tax base is limited or declining.
- Operations
and maintenance of existing systems is expensive.
Workforce issues
- Many
communities can't recruit or retain qualified water professionals.
- Older
water professionals are retiring.
- The
job of operating these facilities has become highly technical.
Creativity/flexibility needed
- Communities
want to add trading to their toolbox of options.
- Cities
need help creating asset management plans for future work.
- Comprehensive
approach to include drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater.
Policy changes
- Look
at nonpoint sources.
- Reconsider
the reuse of wastewater.
- Ban
“flushable” personal care wipes in Minnesota.
- Public
education is needed about the relationship between water bills and water
service, water supply, water conservation, etc.
- Allow
municipalities to raise rates slowly, in ongoing incremental basis.
Based on community
concerns, the MPCA will be seeking policy changes and taking other action this
legislative session (see the example below). More details are available on the agency’s legislative
fact sheets webpage.
Related information:
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The MPCA is seeking a ban on “flushable”
labeling for disposable wipes after dozens of communities spoke on how the
wipes cause costly problems for their wastewater systems.
The MPCA will ask the 2016 Minnesota
Legislature to ban “flushable,” “septic safe,” or “sewer safe” labeling from nonwoven
disposable products (wipes) sold in Minnesota.
It would also require the packaging to include a “Do not flush” message.
Changing the labeling on disposable wipes packaging would help
change public behavior and over time reduce the amount of such wipes being
flushed. Fewer wipes flushed would reduce operation and maintenance costs for
municipalities across the state.
More information is
available in this
fact sheet.
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“Flushable” wipes
will be a main topic of the “Clearing Up Communications” session at the
Collection System Conference March 22 from 12:30-4:30 p.m. at the Marriott
Northwest in Brooklyn Park.
This communications
session for conference participants will focus on how to reach customers with
messages on “flushable” wipes and other matters.
Representatives from Reinhardt, Wendorf & Blanchfield law firm, MPCA
and Met Council will present on the following topics:
- An update on the Litigation
against the Manufacturers of “Flushable” Wipes
- Communications
Toolkit on What Not to Flush
- How
to communicate about wastewater spills
- How
to set up social media accounts, put documents in plain language, and other
questions
You
can help with this presentation, and other MPCA efforts, by submitting your
photos and examples of problems with “flushable” wipes to Cathy Rofshus, public
information officer for the MPCA, at catherine.rofshus@state.mn.us. Your photos may
become part of the public service announcements being developed by the agency
and educational materials for legislators.
Organization is key to managing DMR
data
Here are some quick tips to assist
you in the management and submittal of your DMR data:
Please make sure you are have your
User ID, Password, PIN, and answer to your challenge questions handy. This will
help in the successful submittal of your DMRs.
Make sure to click the “Continue”
button on the Certification Screen (after you’ve answered your challenge
question and PIN) to successfully submit your DMR. Your DMR is not officially
submitted until that button is clicked!
Need to start over on your sample
values? To Cancel an “In Progress Sample Values/DMR,” do the following:
- Click on “My Workspace”
- Under the heading “My Services – In
Progress” -Click the red Cancel button to the right on your screen for the DMR
in progress
- This will make the Sample Values/DMR
accessible under “Available Sample Values” and “Available DMR” sections on the
Manage DMR Services Screen
Being organized is key to successful
submittal and management of your DMRs. Please create folders on your computer
to save your information to and for easy access to your files:
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Additional information is available on the MPCA DMR webpage.
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) is amending
its rules for water quality variance procedures to achieve consistency in state
rules. A public hearing on the proposed rules was held Feb. 4. The public may
submit comments on the proposed rule amendments during the rebuttal comment
period Feb.25 through 4:30 p.m. on March 2. Comments may be submitted to the Office of Administrative Hearings.
The MPCA plans to publish notice of adoption of the rules
in summer 2016. Information on these rules and the hearing documents is
available on the MPCA’s Water
Quality Variance Rulemaking webpage.
MPCA hosted a technical seminar, “New standards. New process. New
limits?” on the watershed approach to setting total phosphorus effluent limits
to meet river standards on Feb. 11. Managing phosphorus is essential for
protecting Minnesota’s surface waters. Excess nutrients, primarily phosphorus,
can ultimately lead to nuisance algal blooms in our surface waters, or
eutrophication.
Surface waters in Minnesota are diverse and complex systems
and require a tailored approach to protect from excess phosphorus loading.
Since 2000, there has been a noticeable decrease in the total phosphorus
concentrations of some streams and rivers that can be attributed to point
source reductions and the adoption of the phosphorus rule (Minn. R. 7053.0255).
In 2008, Minnesota adopted lake
eutrophication standards (LES, 2008), which set defined phosphorus, algae,
and clarity goals for Minnesota’s lakes. As a complement to the lake standards,
Minnesota adopted river
eutrophication standards (RES, 2015) to set phosphorus and algae goals for
rivers and streams.
The recent seminar focused on total phosphorus effluent
limits in NPDES wastewater permits as a result of the recently adopted river
standards. It covered some of the main review concepts, as defined in the
recently published document “Procedures
for implementing eutrophication standards in NPDES wastewater permits in
Minnesota,” hereafter called RES
Procedures. Most individual limit reviews are being conducted on a watershed
scale.
MPCA staff gave a brief overview of the river standards procedures,
provided examples of watershed limit reviews, and allowed time for questions
and answers at the end. Given the data-intensive process used for these limit
reviews, participants did not receive limits for specific facilities.
For more information about the standards and implementation
process, email phosphoruseffluentlimits.pca@state.mn.us.
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