‘Moving the Needle’: Improving Water Quality in Minnesota While Developing Our Agricultural Economy

‘Moving the Needle’: Improving Water Quality in Minnesota While Developing Our Agricultural Economy

2017-01-25

Minnesota’s lakes, rivers, streams, and groundwater are not as fishable, swimmable, and drinkable as we would have them be. Minnesotans have shown their commitment to healthy water by supporting the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment, and the state has defined goals and strategies in the Minnesota Nutrient Reduction Strategy, Nitrogen Fertilizer Management Strategy, and other key reports and rules developed with broad stakeholder involvement and a solid scientific core. Agriculture is among the state’s most important industries and the largest land user. It is key to achieving healthy water because of the impact of agricultural land management choices on water quality. Most water impairments are defined by a handful of pollutants, including excess phosphorus and nitrates, bacteria, and suspended sediments. The state has a large body of scientific evidence that shows that the dominant source of most of these pollutants is due to current agricultural practices. In contrast to agriculture, point sources of nutrients from wastewater treatment plants, urban stormwater, and industry have measurably declined in the past several decades. The row crop agricultural contribution to water pollutant loads is not regulated under federal or state law, and mitigation efforts are largely voluntary and incentive based. While producers have widely engaged in voluntary efforts, these measures are insufficient to meet our long-term water goals given today’s increasingly intensively managed crop production systems.

The Water Resources Center

Friends of the Mississippi River

University of Minnesota (Minneapolis, Minnesota)

24

Agricultural Drainage
Surface Water

Hydrologic systems
Agricultural practices

2010-2019

No

https://www.wrc.umn.edu/publications/wrc-pubs

Public Domain

University of Minnesota