The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has held its first of three meetings to discuss proposed changes to its longstanding rule on sulfate discharge into wild rice waters. The rule, unique to the state of Minnesota, was first adopted in 1973 to protect wild rice but is rarely enforced. The new rule will replace the existing statute with a flexible approach that will both set separate sulfate limits for each water body and account for factors that affect sediment where wild rice grows.
MPCA plans to release the draft rule this spring. For more information, see here.