BABBITT — Birch Lake and the small ditch flowing into it near the Boundary Waters are among the 54 streams and lakes added to the state’s draft impaired waters list this year.
Both are listed as impaired by sulfate, a naturally occurring nutrient also found in discharges from mining operations, wastewater treatment plants and industrial facilities.
The lake and the ditch identified as the Dunka River are near the shuttered Dunka taconite mining site. The site was closed almost 30 years ago and has long been a source of concern for water quality advocates.
It’s also the site of recently approved exploratory drilling by Franconia Minerals, a subsidiary of Twin Metals.
Twin Metals sought approval in the wake of a 20-year mining ban placed on any federal land within the same watershed as the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The exploration is taking place on state-managed land less than 30 miles from the wilderness.
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency said this year’s additions to the impaired waters list is one of the smallest in recent years. In 2022, more than 300 water bodies were identified as impaired.
Challenges remain throughout the state, however, particularly related to pollutants such as “forever chemicals” and sulfate, which the agency says are difficult to manage.
One type of forever chemical can accumulate in fish and is transferred to humans when consumed, potentially causing adverse health effects.
The MPCA proposes three list additions due to high levels of this chemical, including Sargent Creek and Miller Creek in Duluth.
Public comments on the draft list are encouraged through Jan. 12.
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The grants from the Minnesota Department of Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation are geared to support tourism and recreation.
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The termination of the contract, effective at the end of this year, was expected to impact about 700 Lakeview Behavioral Health patients enrolled in Itasca County's public insurance provider.
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The Encampment Minerals proposals, one near Hoyt Lakes and the other near Cotton, call for diamond drilling exploratory borings and geological surveys.
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And: Elevated copper levels in Brainerd's water supply prompts warnings, new mineral exploration plans submitted for St. Louis County locations, and IRRR grants support tourism and recreation in area cities.
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Those living in the city and the annexed rural area are invited to participate in the Christmas Light Contest. Judging will be the week of Dec. 17.
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According to the sheriff’s office, the girl took instructions from a dispatcher on how to slow down the vehicle on her own because her mother was not responding.
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Judge James E. LaFave says the company’s solution for storing waste at the site by lining a tailings pond with bentonite clay is not a “practicable or workable reclamation technique.”
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Smith said millions of Minnesotans rely on the U.S. Postal Service to pay bills, receive prescriptions and conduct essential businesses.
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Plus: an administrative law judge recommends a permit denial for the NorthMet copper-nickel mining project; a 13-year-old rural Laporte girl is honored for response to her mother's medical emergency; MnDOT will host a community meeting on the Highway 169 corridor in Hibbing; and Coleraine residents are challenged to a Christmas lights contest.
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One recipient is Open Arms Resource Center, a new facility in Baxter aimed at connecting people in recovery from substance use with jobs, housing, peer support and more.
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The planning commission will take shape ahead of the dissolution of the Greater Bemidji Area Joint Planning Board at the end of this year.
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And: Crow Wing County to award opioid settlement funds to various community projects; the city of Bemidji seeks applicants for its new planning commission after dissolution of partnership with nearby township; and the deadline to weigh in on the state's regulations of cannabis cultivation and manufacturing is this week.