DEPARTMENT: Environmental Resources
FILE TYPE: Consent Action
TITLE
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Authorization To Execute Agreement With Minnesota Department Of Agriculture For Monitoring Wells On County-Owned Property And Delegation Of Authority For Future Agreements
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PURPOSE/ACTION REQUESTED
Authorize to execute an agreement with the Minnesota Department of Agriculture for the installation of two groundwater monitoring wells located on County-owned property within the road right of way.
SUMMARY
The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) is responsible for implementing the Groundwater Protection rule (Minnesota Rules 1573) to minimize sources of nitrate pollution to the state's groundwater and protect drinking water sources. Part 2 of the rule requires the MDA to respond to drinking water supply management areas (DWSMAs) with elevated nitrate and take action to reduce nitrate in groundwater before a public well exceeds the health standard of 10 milligrams per liter (mg/L).
The Hastings DWSMA has been designated as a mitigation level 2 DWSMA because nitrate in the public water supply wells has exceeded 8.0 mg/L at least once during the last 10 years. Therefore, the MDA is required to take action within the Hastings DWSMA to reduce nitrate in the groundwater. This includes developing a local groundwater monitoring well network to monitor nitrate in the shallow groundwater and working with local farmers to adopt practices that can reduce nitrate levels.
Installation of the shallow groundwater monitoring well network within the Hastings DWSMA is an important part of the implementation of the Groundwater Protection rule to determine if actions on the land are effectively reducing nitrate in the groundwater. It is also beneficial to Dakota County since the monitoring network within the Hastings DWSMA supports strategies identified in the recently adopted Dakota County Agricultural Chemical Reduction Effort (ACRE) Plan.
The MDA has currently identified two monitoring well locati...
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