Purpose

To require pre-construction groundwater testing in rural areas so there is a baseline understanding of groundwater quality around proposed projects.

Definitions

• landowner: the landowner where a private well is located, the landowner’s lessee if the lessee uses the private well, or the operator of a public well.
• project: a project in a rural area that must prepare an environmental assessment worksheet under Minnesota Rules part 4410.4300.
• rural area: an area of the state not within the boundaries of a statutory city or home rule charter city.

Key obligations for projects

• Before construction begins, the project owner or operator must test water supply wells near the project to establish a baseline groundwater quality.
• A project must hire an independent third party to collect well samples and have them analyzed at a laboratory accredited by the Department of Health.
• The project owner or operator must obtain landowner consent before sampling any wells.
• Sampling must occur for all wells within a two-mile radius of the proposed project, with an exception if the landowner does not consent to sampling.
• The landowner must be given free access to the test results for their own well.
• The independent third party must submit the testing results to the Environmental Quality Board (EQB) and to the Minnesota Geospatial Information Office; the EQB must maintain the results in a database as provided in section 103H.175.

Data submission and accessibility

• Test results are to be stored and maintained in a state database by the EQB and shared with the Minnesota Geospatial Information Office.
• This baseline groundwater data collection applies to projects in rural areas as defined above and in connection with environmental assessment requirements.

Significance and potential impact

• Establishes a standardized baseline for groundwater quality near rural construction projects.
• Increases transparency by giving landowners access to test results for their wells.
• Centralizes groundwater data in state agencies, potentially informing future groundwater protection and planning.

Relevant terms - groundwater quality - baseline - water supply wells - private wells - landowner consent - two-mile radius - independent third party - laboratory accreditation - Department of Health - Environmental Quality Board (EQB) - Minnesota Geospatial Information Office - environmental assessment worksheet - 103H.175 - rural area - construction - database