Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

Contact: Jennifer Groebner, 651-296-7706 St. Paul, Minn. -- Through state and federal Clean Water Act program funding, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency recently awarded more than $3 million for projects addressing water pollution. The MPCA received 28 proposals and 10 projects were chosen to receive grant funds, totaling $1,892,444. Four projects also received loan funding to supplement implementation projects, totaling $1,170,000. The types of projects funded typically include: diagnostic study projects that determine how to protect or restore a given water body and to develop a plan for doing so; watershed implementation projects that put best management practices into place, like upgrades of septic systems and feedlots, conservation farming practices, and urban stormwater management measures; and regional or statewide projects that address a given education, development or research need. Watershed implementation projects chosen were:
· Improving Rural Water Quality in the Crow River Basin Project (Crow River Organization of Water; grant funding: $272,480, loan funding: $770,000),
· Targeted BMP Implementation within Impaired Areas in the Upper Mississippi Basin, (Stearns County Soil and Water Conservation District; grant funding: $300,000),
· Improving Stormwater Management in Ecologically Sensitive Watersheds (Middle Fork Crow River Watershed District; grant funding: $140,000, loan funding: $100,000),
· Restoring Water Resources of Sauk River Chain of Lakes (Sauk River Watershed District; grant funding: $200,000, loan funding: $200,000), and
· Osakis Lake Shoreland Enhancement Project (Sauk River Watershed District; grant funding: $160,000, loan funding: $100,000). The University of Minnesota submitted three development, education and research projects which were chosen, including:
· Maximizing the Economic Benefits of Manure to Reduce Nutrient Loading (grant funding: $275,000),
· Developing Selection, Design and Assessment Standards for Shoreline Bioengineering Practices (grant funding: $134,417), and
· Performance of Low Impact Practices on Stormwater Pollutant Load Abatement (grant funding: $300,000). Other development, education and research projects that received funding include:
· Drainage Systems Management Education and Stakeholder Feedback Workshops (Dept. of Agriculture; grant funding: $90,000), and
· Heron Lake Watershed District Conservation Tillage Demonstration Project Plot (Heron Lake Watershed District, $20,547). Background
Each summer, the MPCA puts out a request for proposals for watershed projects that address smaller, more dispersed sources of water pollution. Applicants generally include local units of government, academic institutions and state agencies. Proposals are scored based on criteria in state rules. Some of these criteria include the potential for success based on the technical feasibility, and the potential for a project to serve as a demonstration for similar water quality protection or improvement projects. Organizations involved in scoring the proposals include the MPCA, Board of Water and Soil Resources, Dept. of Natural Resources, Dept. of Agriculture, Dept. of Health, the Environmental Quality Board, the Metropolitan Council and the U.S. Geological Survey. More information about financial assistance available from the MPCA is available at www.pca.state.mn.us/grants/index.html.