SF 4432

as introduced - 91st Legislature (2019 - 2020) Posted on 03/17/2020 02:20pm

A bill for an act
relating to natural resources; appropriating money to ensure safe and sustainable
drinking water for the future.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1. new text begin PILOT PROGRAM TO ENSURE SAFE AND SUSTAINABLE DRINKING
WATER FOR THE FUTURE BY ENHANCING AND LEVERAGING COUNTY
GEOLOGIC ATLAS DATA; APPROPRIATION.
new text end

new text begin $....... in fiscal year 2021 is appropriated from the general fund to the commissioner of
natural resources, in cooperation with the Board of Regents of the University of Minnesota,
Minnesota Geological Survey, to do all of the following to ensure safe and sustainable
drinking water for the future:
new text end

new text begin (1) select a pilot program area consisting of a multicounty area that includes only counties
for which county geological atlases have been completed and in which a regional aquifer
or watershed is located;
new text end

new text begin (2) develop and implement a method for synthesizing and displaying county geologic
atlas data on an aquifer or watershed basis rather than a county basis in the pilot program
area. The data must include information about discharge and recharge;
new text end

new text begin (3) construct a flow model based on the data and apply the model to determine the water
budget for the aquifer or watershed in the pilot program area and resulting prudential limits
on sustainable water appropriations from the aquifer or watershed; and
new text end

new text begin (4) no later than October 1, 2021, submit a plan to the chairs and ranking minority
members of the house of representatives and senate committees and divisions with jurisdiction
over environment and natural resources policy and finance that summarizes the work and
results of the pilot program and provides a plan for undertaking similar efforts for all major
aquifers in the state, including funding options.
new text end

Sec. 2. new text begin PLAN FOR DEVELOPING NETWORK OF MONITORING WELLS AND
WELL-OWNER EDUCATION; APPROPRIATION.
new text end

new text begin $....... in fiscal year 2021 is appropriated from the general fund to the commissioner of
agriculture, in cooperation with the commissioner of health, to develop a plan to increase
well monitoring and education of private well owners in areas with aquifers that are
vulnerable to contamination from nitrate and other chemicals and to develop a network of
monitoring wells that can be used to document trends in groundwater quality over time. No
later than October 1, 2021, the commissioner of agriculture must report the plan to the chairs
and ranking minority members of the house of representatives and senate committees and
divisions with jurisdiction over environment and natural resources policy and finance. This
is a onetime appropriation and is available until June 30, 2022.
new text end