MPCA does not support single sulfate standard for all of Minnesota’s wild rice waters
The Iron Ore Alliance is pleased that the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) is continuing its work to determine an appropriate sulfate level standard based on sound science for each body of water in the state. Minnesota’s sulfate water quality standard is a critical issue for the taconite mining industry and Minnesota is the only state in the nation with such a standard.
As the MPCA announced today, it plans to go through formal rulemaking to change the existing standard later this year. While today was an important step in the process, it is not a comprehensive solution to the sulfate issues. Good, defensible science is still needed.
In a recent interview with Minnesota Public Radio, Governor Dayton stated that the sulfate standard is complex and doesn’t guarantee that wild rice will thrive. He also said that the sulfate standard aimed at protecting wild rice is out of date, and implementing it could be catastrophic for northeastern Minnesota.
The Iron Ore Alliance believes that wild rice can be protected while also allowing for continued operations in Minnesota’s taconite mining industry. We plan to continue working with the MPCA and all interested stakeholders to ensure that the sulfate standard is fairly enforced and based on modern science.