Water Quality Sampling

In order to prevent and address problems in Minnesota’s lakes and streams, good information is needed. The District has a Surface Water Assessment Grant from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to gather water samples in the St. Louis River watershed. It also has contracts for Civic Engagement/Public Participation and Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategies (WRAPS) Support in the Cloquet, Little Fork, Rainy Rivers – Headwaters, St. Louis, and Vermilion rivers watersheds. Both of these grants tie into MPCA’s Water Quality Monitoring Strategy.

The results of lake and stream water quality testing with surface water assessment grants is entered in to MPCA’s EQuIS system for use by all. It is anticipated this work will be repeated every 10 years as part of MPCA’s Water Quality Monitoring Strategy.

WRAPS Support, civic engagement and public participation contracts allow the District to solicit and gather input from the public in select watersheds. They also provide funding to identify surface water monitoring gaps and potential projects for restoration and protection. In northeastern Minnesota, we are quite fortunate to have very high quality of water, in general.