Polluted water impacts every aspect of the water use cycle, from the quality of water for recreation, to drinking water availability and treatment, to wastewater treatment requirements, to aquatic life, and to public and ecosystem health. The Met Council is committed to partnering with regional water professionals to further our efforts and actions to address contamination and work to improve water quality.

Today we are working to address environmental pollution due to nitrogen, phosphorus, chlorides, per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), sulfates, and manganese, selenium, and arsenic. Tomorrow may bring something new, either another contaminant of concern or new or modified standards or regulatory limits. Within our own wastewater treatment processes, we will mitigate these threats to the best of our technological ability. New and changing limits have the potential to increase operational expenses and require new technology installation or additional treatment infrastructure for the Met Council, local water suppliers, watershed managers, and others. Our goal is to cost effectively meet current and new regulatory standards. A team of operators, chemists, engineers, mechanics, water resources scientists, and others support our water resource recovery facilities in meeting their federal clean water discharge permits. Treatment methods and technological improvements are addressed and implemented as new and modified regulatory limits arise. Constant monitoring and communication with other state and federal agencies support us in our goals and our record of compliance. High water quality and pollutant reduction is only successful if the region works together towards clean water resources. Preventing water from being contaminated, also described as source reduction, is an effective and inexpensive way to keep waters clean. Activities like smart salting during wintertime, cleaning catch basins of debris, and addressing PFAS at the source are only some examples of the many ways to keep our water bodies healthy.

Desired outcomes:

• Protection, restoration, and improvement of water quality is holistically pursued and achieved.
• The Met Council partners, engages, and provides expertise in the research and regulatory work for contaminants of concern with other public agencies.
• The Met Council stays abreast of new and evolving emerging contaminants, contaminant issues, and responds to changing regulatory requirements.
• The connections between water quality (physical and chemical), public and ecosystem health, and equitable water outcomes are addressed in planning and management decisions.
• Efforts to protect and improve water quality are addressed collaboratively by local governments, state agencies, regional partners, Tribal nations, and individual residents.
• Communities have the resources they need to provide a safe water supply. A shared process is developed that allows communities, water utilities, and regulators to respond in a more coordinated and effective way to both contaminants of emerging concern and existing contamination.
• Pollution in stormwater is reduced with the widespread use of best management practices and green infrastructure.
• Public and environmental health is protected, and all residents, communities, Tribal Nations, and agency partners have the support, technical and financial, needed to address evolving and emerging contaminants.