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MPCA online services give users online access to apply for permits and licenses, submit required information, and pay fees and invoices.
MPCA permits are required for extensions, additions, or other modifications to sanitary sewer collection systems that result in new or increased discharges of pollutants.
Reusing and recycling materials from construction and demolition (C&D) can help address pressing disposal and contamination issues in Minnesota, and have significant economic and environmental benefits.
Join the celebration! We look forward to highlighting Minnesota’s clean water successes and invite you to use our 50th anniversary art and branded graphics.
The Precision Plating site in north Minneapolis was formerly home to a metal plating facility where solvents and metals were released into the soil and groundwater.
Controlling phosphorus is an important part of protecting Minnesota waters.
The MPCA studies, monitors, and regulates water pollutants to protect human health and the environment. Minnesota water quality standards strives to protect water for use, measures health of waters, and guides limits on what regulated facilities can discharge to surface waters.
A successful cleanup of contaminated land along the Cedar River in Austin caps a long history of industrial pollution.
Superfund requires specific investigation and cleanup processes, designates parties that are legally responsible for the cleanup, and provides funds for certain types of cleanups under Minnesota’s Environmental Response and Liability Act (MERLA).
Eight grant recipients will receive $302,173 for projects that will make the state’s soil healthier and reduce the emission of greenhouse gases. All are focused on composting organic waste in multi-resident housing.
Composting organic waste and compostable products creates a valuable product that improves soil fertility, conserves water, and reduces erosion.
The MPCA is seeking public comment on a draft wastewater permit and accompanying environmental assessment worksheet (EAW) for a new regional sanitary district to serve the communities of Goodhue, Wanamingo, Zumbrota, and Pine Island.
Find out what’s being done in Minnesota’s watersheds to protect and improve water quality.
Any facility that is engaged in a narrative activity or a primary SIC code, as listed in the Multi-Sector General Permit, needs to apply for industrial stormwater permit coverage or certify for No Exposure.
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA)’s draft wastewater permit for the 3M facility at Cottage Grove adds new water quality protections for the Mississippi River and improves accountability through monitoring and reporting requirements. The draft permit is one of the most rigorous in state history and mandates the removal of certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to levels below detection.
The MPCA completed 78 enforcement cases for water quality, air quality, waste, stormwater, and wastewater violations in the second half of 2025, for a total of 146 for the year.
Resources for wastewater clients.
The MPCA gave an environmental award to the Evangelical Lutheran Good Samaritan Society, which sold land so it could become a watershed wetland in Baxter. The project is being finalized in summer 2024.
The MPCA has started a study intended to understand and document the variation in naturally occurring sulfate levels across the state.
Protecting and restoring water quality is one of the MPCA's core areas of focus.