DEVELOPING ECOLOGICAL CRITERIA FOR SUSTAINABLE WATER MANAGEMENT IN MINNESOTA

Managing water to meet current human needs and economic demands without undermining long-term water supplies or environmental quality is one of the most pressing challenges facing many regions in the 21st century. Minnesota is endowed with a wealth of lakes, streams, and rivers, significant aquatic biodiversity, popular game fish resources, and an engaged public interested in aquatic habitat protection and restoration. The state is recognized as a leader in aquatic protection, and has long had one of the more comprehensive water appropriation permitting processes among the states, with a permitting system that dates to 1937. However, like many states around the country, Minnesota faces mounting water management challenges in the face of population growth, land use change, and growing demand for water, combined with an array of water quality impairments and trends. In at least some parts of the state, human use now represents a significant fraction of the renewable supply of water. At the same time, drainage and land use alterations have in many places substantially altered flow regimes, including annual flow volumes, frequency and severity of low and high flow events. For example, analysis of streamflow gages throughout the state suggests that many rivers have been experiencing declining trends in July-August low flows, despite increased rainfall over the same period (Streitz 2011). These changes have the potential to drive significant changes in freshwater ecosystems.