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State agencies, counties, municipalities, nonprofit organizations, and many others are engaged in protecting Minnesota lakes.
Whether they are called sloughs, swamps, bogs, or potholes, these are all wetlands and they provide many environmental benefits and contribute to watershed health. Though Minnesota has lost almost half of its wetland acreage over time, the quality of the remaining wetlands is good overall.
The MPCA has actively been developing methods and building capacity to improve our ability to monitor and assess wetlands to protect and restore them.
The MPCA monitors and assesses lakes around the state to determine if they meet water quality standards.
The Lake of the Woods lies on the border between the U.S. and Canada; the watershed covers 734,783 acres.
Throughout her life, Jen Widmer has felt a deep connection to wetlands. As a child, she played broomball on the ice of a wetland near her home. She once attempted swimming in the wetland but was…
Image Although Minnesota is rich in lakes and streams, Lake Superior is easily the most spectacular waterbody in Minnesota. Despite its immense size…
We Are Water next visits Ely April 24 through June 16.
We Are Water next visits Ortonville and the Big Stone Lake area March 15 through April 21.
The Rainy River - Rainy Lake Watershed covers 583,791 acres. Open water makes up 75,815 of those acres and wetlands occupy another 84,851 acres. The watershed is 64% in St. Louis County and 36% in Koochiching County. The northern boundary is part of the international border waters with Ontario, Canada.
The Red Lake River Watershed, which covers 909,024 acres, is part of the Red River Basin in northwestern Minnesota. The Red Lake River begins its course in Beltrami County at Lower Red Lake.
The Lake Superior - North Watershed covers over 1 million acres in the Northern Lakes and Forest ecoregion.
The Upper/Lower Red Lake Watershed covers more than 1.2 million acres and is home to Upper and Lower Red Lakes, the two largest bodies of water within the state.
The Floristic Quality Assessment (FQA) is a vegetation-based ecological assessment approach that can be used for wetland quality monitoring and assessment.
The MPCA is investigating the source of the chemical 1,4-dioxane in private wells in Gem Lake.
Profile of Karl Scheuer, a volunteer with the MPCA's Volunteer Water Monitoring Program
The Lake Superior - South Watershed covers 402,371 acres.
MPCA investigation determined Derek Vekich committed stormwater and wetland violations in 2024.
The MPCA plans to amend water quality standards (Minn. Rules chapter 7050) affecting Class 2 beneficial uses, which protect surface waters for aquatic life and recreation.
The Leech Lake River Watershed consists of approximately 854,659 acres (1,335 sq. miles) in the northern part of the Upper Mississippi River Basin. The watershed includes parts of Beltrami, Cass, and Hubbard counties and the Leech Lake Reservation (Leech Lake Band of Chippewa).