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Ambient Ground Water Monitoring and Assessment

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) collects large amounts of ground water quality data. Most of this is collected through programs such as Superfund, Petroleum Remediation, and Landfills. This monitoring is considered investigation and compliance monitoring. Only small amounts of data are collected through ambient ground water monitoring.

Ambient monitoring has two primary objectives. These are 1) to determine the status of the ground water resources, and 2) to identify trends in water quality over time. Between 1989 and 2001, the MPCA conducted ambient monitoring through the Ground Water Monitoring and Assessment Program (GWMAP). In 2003, the MPCA re-established an ambient monitoring effort.

In 2004, the Minnesota Department of Health, Minnesota Department of Agriculture, and the MPCA completed a Memorandum of Agreement that describes monitoring responsibilities for each agency. Consequently, MPCA’s ambient monitoring activities differ considerably from those of our former program, GWMAP.

This Web page contains information about on-going ambient monitoring efforts, historic information from GWMAP, and other ground water information useful for a variety of audiences. At this web site, you can find answers to the following questions:

• What is the average concentration of a specific chemical in a particular aquifer or at a particular location in Minnesota? (see Baseline Water Quality of Minnesota’s Aquifers)
• What are typical chemical concentrations in shallow ground water beneath irrigated agriculture, nonsewered residential areas, and forested areas? (see Impacts of Land Use on Ground Water Quality)
• What is the quality of ground water under concrete lined, clay lined, and unlined manure storage basins? (see Impacts of Manure Storage Systems on Ground Water Quality)
• What is the quality of ground water down-gradient of an Individual sewage Treatment System? (see Impacts of ISTS on Ground Water Quality)

Contact Information

For more information about ambient ground water monitoring at the MPCA, contact Sharon Kroening or call toll free at 1-800-657-3864.