Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

Media contact: Nancy Miller, 507/280-3590 Technical contact: Lee Ganske, 507/281-7765 Rochester, Minn. - The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) requests public comments on a draft report about fecal coliform bacteria pollution in several streams within the Blue Earth River Basin. The report, known as a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) study, is on public notice Nov. 6 through Dec. 6, 2006. A total of 21 reaches, or segments, of the Blue Earth River are or will be listed by the MPCA as "impaired" because they fail to meet water quality standards for fecal coliform. Land-applied manure and failing septic systems appear to be the primary sources of the bacteria, according to the report. Other sources include wastewater treatment facilities, livestock, wildlife and pets. Every two years, states are required to submit a list of impaired waters to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The listing of impaired waters and the TMDL report are part of a nationwide effort, required by the federal Clean Water Act, to identify and clean up polluted streams, rivers and lakes. States must determine the maximum daily amount, or load, of pollutants that a water body can receive and still meet water-quality standards, determine the sources of the pollutants, and allocate needed reductions among them. As of 2006, Minnesota has identified 284 rivers and streams with one or more reaches impaired by one or more pollutants. The Blue Earth River Basin covers parts of 14 counties in south-central Minnesota and northern Iowa. The basin includes three major watersheds, the Blue Earth, Le Sueur and Watonwan. Seventeen stream segments in the basin currently are listed as impaired for fecal coliform bacteria, and four more that are likely to be listed on the 2008 list. The draft report on the Blue Earth River fecal coliform bacteria TMDL is available for review at/water/tmdl and at the MPCA's Rochester office (address below). Comments on the report must be in writing and received by 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 6, 2006. Send comments and requests for additional information to Lee Ganske, MPCA, 18 Wood Lake Drive SE, Rochester, MN 55904, or by e-mail to lee.ganske@pca.state.mn.us.