Little Rock Creek Sustainable Groundwater Use Planning Project Update

March 17, 2016 Project Update

Project Background:

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is bringing people together in the Little Rock Creek Area to discuss groundwater resources and to gather advice on a DNR action plan to ensure groundwater use in the area remains sustainable.

 Sustainable use of groundwater in the Little Rock Creek Area is critical to maintaining the health of ecosystems that support agricultural irrigation, economic growth, safe drinking water, and good recreational opportunities. 

The project will develop a plan to guide DNR groundwater management actions over the next 5 years in the Little Rock Creek Area. The DNR thinks a 5-year plan is necessary, because there are indications that groundwater use may be approaching some important sustainable use thresholds. If the DNR needs to collect more information, review and revise permits, promote conservation, or resolve water use conflicts, we want that process to be very open and transparent to the public. 

The Project Advisory Team:

The DNR has assembled a “Project Advisory Team” to help with the planning project.  Members of the advisory team include cropland irrigators, lake association members, livestock producers, members of local units of government, the sporting community and others with an interest or expertise in water resources.  Half of the advisory team members have a groundwater permit for high-volume use (over a million gallons a year). 

The advisory team discusses groundwater-related topics at their meetings.  They will provide advice and recommendations on a DNR action plan for groundwater management in the LRC area.  The advisory team meetings will be open to the public.  The DNR will post advisory team meeting dates and times on its web site, will send notifications to individuals on the project’s “email list”, and it will notify local media through news releases about advisory team meeting dates.

Discussion Topics at the March 3^rd Meeting:

The Project Advisory Team met for the first time at Rice City Hall on Wednesday, March 3^rd.  Twenty-one of the twenty-six members of the advisory team attended the meeting. There were ten members of the general public, along with several members of the DNR, in the audience. 

The first part of the March 3^rd meeting was spent getting to know one another, understanding the project timelines and process, and getting some background on the Little Rock Creek Area.

Some advisory team members are not convinced that there are groundwater problems in the Little Rock Creek Area and asked the DNR to provide evidence.  Mark Hauck, the project manager, said that the next advisory team meeting will focus on the topic of groundwater availability in the area and the DNR will provide data to describe what it sees as some of the key water quantity problems.  The April advisory team meeting will focus on water quality: another aspect of groundwater sustainability.

During this first meeting, advisory team members were asked to share thoughts on “what makes the Little Rock Creek Area special to them” and “what do they feel is at risk in the area.”  Here is a summary of their responses.

When asked “What is special about the Little Rock Creek Area?” responses included:

• Availability of groundwater provides for a very diverse agricultural economy (crops, livestock, nursery products)
• Blessed with lots of water
• Excellent agricultural opportunity
• High concentration of irrigation systems
• Few recreational waters
• All the people that live here
• High agricultural use
• Rare native prairie remnants
• 1 of 2 useable lakes in Benton County
• Sandy soil

 

When asked, “What is at risk in the Little Rock Creek Area?” responses included:

• Economics
• Sufficient water available for agriculture
• Over regulation
• Possible over use of water
• Small family farms
• Water quality in Little Rock Lake
• Economic Viability
• Farming crops

 

Next Project Advisory Team Meeting – March 30^th:

The next meeting of the PAT will be held at the Rice City Hall from 1:00 to 4:00, Wednesday, March 30.  The public is welcome to attend.  The next meeting will focus on the hydrology of the Little Rock Creek Area and will explore what we know about the quantity of water available for use by individuals, businesses, and communities.  This discussion will highlight some of the key groundwater problems in the Little Rock Creek Area and why the DNR wants to create an action plan to address them.

Contact Information

Direct questions about this project can be addressed to Mark Hauck, DNR project manager, at 320-223-7846 or mark.hauck@state.mn.us .

To sign up for email updates and follow progress of the plan on the DNR’s project web page go to: http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/waters/groundwater_section/sustainability/lrc/index.html .

For more information on groundwater management, visit www.mndnr.gov/gwmp/index.html