2010 Impaired Waters Listing

2010 Impaired Waters listing

                Every two years, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) is required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), through the Clean Water Act, to submit an updated list of impaired waters to the EPA for their review and approval. Impaired waters are defined and placed on this list when they do not meet water quality standards for their EPA designated usages. 

                In accordance with this requirement, the MPCA has drafted a 2010 list with a total of 1,774 impairments, including 378 new Total Maximum Daily Loading (TMDL) listings, among which are impairments for excess nutrients in lakes, perfluoroctane sulfonate (PFOS) in fish in streams and lakes, and excess nitrates in waters protected for drinking water. Each TMDL listing is pollutant-specific, defining the maximum amount of each pollutant that can be released and assimilated in receiving waters from point and non-point sources, thereby allowing the receiving waters to meet water quality standards.

                Within the Cannon River watershed, there have been 17 new excessive nutrient lake impairments listed; bring the total to 36 impaired lakes. Also, E. coli bacteria, nitrates and turbidity (sediment) impairments were listed for 23 new sites bring the total of number of impairments to these systems to 43.

 For further information, please visit the MPCA website

 http://www.pca.state.mn.us/water/tmdl/tmdl-303dlist.html

Or view an interactive map of impaired waters at

http://www.pca.state.mn.us/water/tmdl/tmdl-maps.html