Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

Contact: Dan McLean, 651-297-1607 Saint Paul, Minn. -- The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) is seeking public comments on a draft report about water pollution in the Twin Lake chain of lakes in Hennepin County. The report, titled, "Total Maximum Daily Load Evaluation of Excess Nutrient Impairments in Twin Lakes and Ryan Lake," is on public notice until Oct. 15, 2007. The Twin Lake chain of lakes is located in the cities of Brooklyn Center, Crystal, Minneapolis and Robbinsdale. The four lakes are part of the Shingle Creek watershed and are heavily used for fishing and swimming. Samples have consistently shown excessive levels of nutrients, particularly phosphorus, making the waters unsuitable for aquatic recreation and placing them on Minnesota's list of impaired waters. The list and report are part of a nationwide effort under the Total Maximum Daily Load provision of the federal Clean Water Act to identify and clean up pollution in streams, rivers and lakes. Every two years, states are required to submit a list of impaired waters to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. States and local organizations must prepare a TMDL report which calculates the maximum amount of a pollutant a water body can receive, known as the "loading capacity," and still meet water quality standards. The draft TMDL is currently on public notice and available on the MPCA Web site at www.pca.state.mn.us/water/tmdl. Comments must be in writing and received by 4:30 p.m. on Oct. 15, 2007. Send comments and requests for additional information to Tim Larson, MPCA, 520 Lafayette Road North, St. Paul, MN 55155-4194. Larson can also be reached by phone at 651-296-7359 or by e-mail at timothy.larson@pca.state.mn.us.