The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has awarded nine Surface Water Assessment Grants (SWAG) for the 2015-2016 monitoring seasons.  Each year the MPCA seeks local assistance for water quality monitoring in accordance with its Intensive Watershed Monitoring Plan. With this plan, the MPCA has assigned a year to each of the 81 major watersheds in the state for sampling during a 10-year cycle. For 2015-2016 funds have been provided to assist with monitoring in the following watersheds:

• Cloquet River
• Lac Qui Parle
• Minnesota River Headwaters
• Mississippi River-Grand Rapids
• Mississippi River-La Crescent
• Mississippi River-Reno
• Rainy River
• Roseau River
• Upper Iowa River
• Vermilion River

The amount of $445,000 has been awarded to:

• Aitkin County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD)
• Carlton County SWCD
• Headwaters Science Center
• Itasca County SWCD
• Lac Qui Parle – Yellow Bank Watershed District
• North St. Louis SWCD
• Regents of the University of Minnesota Natural Resources Research Institute
• Root River SWCD
• Roseau County SWCD

SWAGs provide local governmental units, non-profit organizations, American Indian Tribal governments, and colleges and universities with funds to gauge the health of lakes and streams. Additionally, grant dollars provide funding for training, citizen volunteer programs, equipment, and lab analysis of water samples.The MPCA works with partners and citizens on the local level to identify healthy lakes and streams that need protection. They also identify waters that fail to meet state standards and require restoration. The data collected help set priorities for the agency and funding sources like the Clean Water Land and Legacy Amendment.

Recent testing by the MPCA shows three northeast Minnesota watersheds have good-to-high water quality - and that’s great news for people seeking a quality wilderness experience.

In the Lake Superior-South watershed, along the North Shore, and the Big Fork River watershed, in Itasca and Koochiching Counties, the high water quality may be due to high levels of undisturbed land. The mostly-undeveloped Nemadji River watershed, straddling the Minnesota-Wisconsin border near Duluth, is covered by forests and wetlands, including state forests, wildlife management areas and other public lands. (Photo at right shows paddlers on the Nemadji.)

Some of the cleanest waters in the Lake Superior-South watershed have excellent fish and aquatic invertebrate communities and the habitat required to sustain them.

A large majority of the Big Fork River system is in excellent condition; it is one of the healthiest watersheds in the state with more than 150 stream miles that support recreation and aquatic life. More than 100 lakes met recreation- based standards including Turtle, North Star and Gunn.

Although water quality monitoring results show a different story in the Nemadji, there are some bright spots to be found in the watershed, including State Line Creek and the Net River.

Additional testing should determine whether problems such as excess sediment, bacteria and mercury have natural or human causes.

For more information, visit www.pca.state.mn.us and search by the watershed’s name.

The MPCA recently released its proposal for protecting wild rice from excess sulfate. Rather than relying on a single sulfate level for all wild rice waters in the state, the agency proposes to calculate a sulfate level for each wild rice water, based on location-specific factors.

The MPCA’s study of how sulfate affects wild rice, which began in 2012, finds:

• In the sediment in which wild rice is rooted, sulfate from the water above is converted to sulfide by bacteria
• Higher levels of sulfide in the sediment create an environment that is less hospitable to wild rice

However, certain factors change the rate at which sulfate is converted to sulfide. Most significantly, higher levels of iron can lead to less sulfide, and higher levels of organic carbon can lead to more sulfide.

To take these variables into account, the MPCA developed an equation that can determine a sulfate level that will protect wild rice for a specific water body. The agency proposes collecting sediment samples in wild rice stands, measuring the iron and organic carbon concentrations in the sediment, and then plugging the data into the equation to calculate a protective sulfate concentration for that particular wild rice water.

The MPCA will be scheduling meetings with interested stakeholders to further describe and get input on its proposal. The agency will continue to refine the proposal based on feedback and any new data. At the same time, the MPCA will consider how the study’s findings will inform regulatory decisions and develop the data collection protocol needed to implement the proposal. The MPCA plans to go through formal rulemaking to change the existing standard later this year. The rulemaking will also include listing specific wild rice waters that are subject to the standard.

The MPCA has compiled a draft list of wild rice waters, along with a process to add waters to the list over time. The list and process are available on the MPCA's draft proposal for wild rice webpage. The MPCA also proposes that a sulfate standard is not needed to protect commercial wild rice paddies.

The MPCA is inviting the public to comment on a revised water quality standard proposed for Spring Lake in Scott County. The proposed water quality target is specific to this lake, and is meant to address problematic levels of nutrients — specifically phosphorus — in the lake.

Spring Lake is located in the city of Prior Lake and Spring Lake Township. It is popular for recreation and fishing. However, because of its excess phosphorus levels, Spring Lake suffers from algal blooms and diminished clarity, which makes the lake less suitable for recreation.

MPCA staff are proposing a site-specific water quality target for Spring Lake because of new information about historic in-lake phosphorus concentrations dating back nearly 200 years.

The Prior Lake-Spring Lake watershed district conducted a lake sediment core study, which revealed that historic total phosphorus levels in the lake were approximately 60 micrograms per liter even prior to European settlement of the area in the mid-1800s, which led to significant changes in land use. In response to this study, MPCA staff believe it is reasonable to treat this concentration of phosphorus as a natural background condition and, therefore, the best phosphorus level that this lake could be expected to achieve.

A public informational meeting to discuss the proposed standard is planned for April 14, 2015 at 6 p.m. The meeting will be held at Prior Lake City Hall, 4646 Dakota Street Southeast in Prior Lake.

The MPCA invites comments on two reports outlining strategies to restore the Le Sueur River watershed. The reports are open for comment through April 29.

The Le Sueur watershed covers 711,000 acres in south-central Minnesota. It drains parts of Blue Earth, Faribault, Freeborn, Steele and Waseca counties. Near Mankato, this river meets the Blue Earth River, a tributary to the Minnesota River.

This watershed is one of the highest polluting watersheds in Minnesota, according to data collected statewide. Impairments – waters that fail to meet standards – are common throughout the watershed.

In this first cycle of intensely studying the watershed:

• Of the 11 lakes examined in the watershed, two supported aquatic recreation — St. Olaf and Reeds. Five were impaired due to high nutrient levels, and four need more data to determine their status.
• Of the 74 stream sections examined, only one — in the Cobb River — supported aquatic life. Twenty-one were impaired and 12 need more data to determine their status. Forty have been altered significantly so the MPCA is deferring assessment.

Under federal and state laws, impaired waters must have Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) studies to determine reductions of pollutants needed to again meet water quality standards. In this first WRAPS cycle, the MPCA completed TMDL studies for four lakes and six stream sections. In addition to these lakes and stream sections, the MPCA has completed a TMDL study for Lura Lake in the watershed and is working to complete a TMDL study of turbidity in the Le Sueur River as part of the greater Blue Earth River System.

Comments on the reports,which are available online, are due by 4:30 p.m. on April 29, to Paul Davis, MPCA project manager, at paul.a.davis@state.mn.usor 12 Civic Center Dr., Ste. 2165, Mankato, MN. Davis can be reached at 507-344-5246 or 800-657-3864.

The MPCA is seeking comments on a watershed restoration and protection report for the Buffalo River Watershed. The report, known as a Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy (WRAPS), summarizes monitoring and water quality improvement projects completed during the past several years, and identifies strategies necessary to restore and protect the water quality of streams and lakes in the watershed. Comments on the report are being accepted through April 29.

The Buffalo River watershed covers more than 1,100 square miles in portions of Clay, Becker, Wilkin and Otter Tail counties in western Minnesota.

The WRAPS report includes a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) study. A TMDL study establishes the maximum amount of a pollutant a water body can receive on a daily basis and still meet water-quality standards. The Buffalo River TMDL identified pollution resulting from excess nutrients, E. coli bacteria, turbidity (reduced light penetration of water due to suspended solids) and low dissolved oxygen. In addition to these impairments, the study identified locations where conditions make it difficult to support aquatic insects (macro invertebrates) and fish. The TMDL study is also available for public review and comment.

The draft WRAPS report and TMDL study are available on the MPCA’s Buffalo River Watershed webpage.

Written comments should be mailed to Tim James, MPCA, 714 Lake Ave., Ste., 220, Detroit Lakes, MN 56501, or sent by email to tim.james@state.mn.us. They must be received by 4:30 p.m. on April 29, 2015.

The third Minnesota River Congress will convene Thursday, April 16 at Turner Halle in New Ulm. The purpose will be to decide on a mission, organizational structure, objectives, guiding principles and ground rules for future meetings.

Doors will open at 4:30 p.m. for a networking fair with displays and representatives from organizations active in the Minnesota River basin. A burger bar buffet will start at 6 p.m. Results from prior congresses will be reviewed at 6:45 p.m. The full session begins at 7 p.m. and will adjourn at 9 p.m.

The third congress will build from previous congress meetings June 19 and Oct. 30, and six regional meetings. It is open to everyone interested in the economic, social, and natural resource vitality of the basin, encompassing nearly 11 million acres, more than 700,000 people, and thousands of farms and industries.

Within Minnesota it includes all or portions of 37 counties and more than a hundred cities and towns. All depend on its land and water. The people in the basin are represented by one or more of the many organizations in the basin. Yet there is no collective voice speaking solely for the land and water throughout the entire basin, for what they need to stay healthy and productive.

Organizers believe there’s a need for a citizen-led entity that is inviting and all inclusive for the many different groups active in the Minnesota River Valley, including agriculture, industry, natural resources, recreation, economic development, tourism, all levels of government, faith communities, first nations, and watershed organizations.

Cost per person is $15 in advance and $20 at the door. Networking booth space is available on a limited basis for $30. Checks made to Coalition for a Clean Minnesota River can be mailed to PO Box 488, New Ulm, MN 56073. Tables will be provided. You can register individually online using Paypal.