Polluted Waters In MN: 305 Mores Lakes, Streams Added To List

ACROSS MINNESOTA — The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency Monday released its proposed impaired waters list for 2022, adding 305 additional water bodies.

The total list now includes 2,904 water bodies with 6,168 different impairments.

For the first time, waters outside the Twin Cities metro were listed with PFAS contamination, otherwise known as "forever chemicals."

Some of the waters added to the 2022 list include:

• Root River in southeastern Minnesota
• Vermillion River in Dakota County
• Lake Osakis in north-central Minnesota
• Norway Lake in Kandiyohi County
• Lake Phalen in Ramsey County
• St. Louis River in Duluth

The good news is that 31 waters will be removed from Minnesota’s 2022 list because of improving water quality. Those waters include Sunfish and LeMay lakes in Dakota County, where special lake treatments and new stormwater controls dramatically lowered phosphorus levels.

"Minnesota’s water is its most valuable resource and everyone expects our lakes and streams to be suitable for swimming and fishing," said Katrina Kessler, MPCA commissioner, in a news release.

"While Minnesota has made progress in cleaning up waters, too many of our lakes and streams are in still trouble, from high levels of phosphorus that grow algae to PFAS contamination in our waters in Greater Minnesota. We still have more work to do."

Bacteria, sediment, nutrients, and poor conditions for fish are among the most common impairments in Minnesota waters, according to officials.

Find an interactive map showing polluted waters in Minnesota here.